IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


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1.0 


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1^128    |2.5 

"  1^  IIIIIM 


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1.25  lllll  1.4 


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Photographic 

Sciences 

Corporation 


23  WIST  MAIN  STREIT 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  14S80 

(716)872-4303 


\ 


\ 


c^ 


CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHIVI/ICMH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Institute  for  Historical  Microreproductions  /  Institut  Canadian  de  microreproductions  historiques 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notas/Notos  tachniquas  at  bibliographiquaa 


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which  may  alter  any  of  the  images  in  the 
reproduction,  or  which  may  significantly  change 
the  usual  method  of  filming,  are  checked  below. 


D 


D 


D 


D 
0 


D 


D 


Coloured  covers/ 
Couverture  de  couieur 


|~7|    Covers  damaged/ 


Couverture  endommagde 


Covers  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couverture  restauiAe  et/ou  pellicul^e 


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appear  within  the  text.  Whenever  possible,  these 
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mais.  iorsque  cela  6tait  possible,  ces  pages  n'ont 
pas  6t6  fiim^es. 

Additional  comments:/ 
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point  de  vue  bibliographique,  qui  peuvent  modifier 
une  image  reproduite.  ou  qui  peuvent  exiger  une 
modification  dans  la  mAthode  normale  de  filmage 
sont  indiquis  ci-dessous. 


I      I   Coloured  pages/ 


y 


D 


Pages  de  couieur 

Pages  damaged/ 
Pages  endommagies 

Pages  restored  and/o( 

Pages  restaur^es  et/ou  pelliculAes 


r~y|    Pages  damaged/ 

I      I    Pages  restored  and/or  laminated/ 


The 
toth 


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Includes  supplementary  materit 
Comprend  du  materiel  supplAmentaire 

Only  edition  available/ 
Seule  Edition  disponible 


[~T|  Showthrough/ 

I      I  Quality  of  print  varies/ 

I      I  Includes  supplementary  material/ 

I      I  Only  edition  available/ 


Pages  wholly  or  partially  obscured  by  errata 
slips,  tissues,  etc.,  have  been  refilmed  to 
ensure  the  best  possible  image/ 
Les  pages  totalement  ou  partiellement 
obscurcies  par  un  feuiilet  d'errata.  une  pelure, 
etc..  ont  dtd  film^es  «]i  nouveau  de  fapon  d 
obtenir  la  meilieure  image  possible. 


The 
poss 
of  th 
fiimi 


Origi 
begii 
the  I) 
sion, 
othei 
first 
sion, 
or  ill! 


The  I 
shall 
TINU 
whic 

l\/lapa 

differ 

entire 

begin 

right 

requii 

methi 


10X 

PVUIII 

Dill  e 

91    III 

liie  a 

14X 

u  tau 

A  ua 

rouu 

utiun 

18X 

■null 

4U0   ii 

i-u«a 

22X 

26X 

30X 

,. 

\/ 

12X 

16X 

20X 

1- 

':  <^k  ■  ■■ 

24X 

' 

28X 

32X 

ilaire 
s  details 
que*  du 
It  modifier 
liger  une 
le  filmage 


The  copy  filmed  here  has  been  reproduced  thanits 
to  the  generosity  of: 

iMieOdrum  Library 

Carleton  Univanity 


The  images  appearing  here  are  the  best  quality 
possible  considering  the  condition  and  legibility 
of  the  original  copy  and  in  Iceeping  with  the 
filming  contract  specifications. 


L'exemplaire  filmA  f ut  reprodult  grAce  A  la 
g6n4rosit4  de: 

MaeOdrum  Library 
Carlaton  Univartity 


Les  images  suivantes  ont  At6  reproduites  avec  le 
plus  grand  soin,  compte  tenu  de  la  condition  et 
de  la  nettet*  de  l'exemplaire  film*,  et  en 
conformity  avec  les  conditions  du  contrat  de 
filmage. 


1/ 
lu^es 


Original  copies  in  printed  paper  covers  are  filmed 
beginning  with  the  front  cover  and  ending  on 
the  last  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, or  the  back  cover  when  appropriate.  All 
other  original  copies  are  filmed  beginning  on  the 
first  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, and  ending  on  the  last  page  with  a  printed 
or  illustrated  impression. 


Les  exemplalres  originaux  dont  la  couverture  en 
papier  est  ImprimAe  sont  fiimis  en  commenqant 
par  le  premier  plat  et  en  terminant  soit  par  la 
derniire  page  qui  comporte  une  emprelnte 
d'impression  ou  d'lllustration.  soit  par  le  second 
plat,  salon  le  cas.  Tous  les  autres  exemplalres 
originaux  sont  filmto  en  commenpant  par  la 
premiere  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'lllustration  et  en  terminant  par 
la  dernlAre  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
empreinte. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shall  liontain  the  symbol  — ^  (meaning  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  the  symbol  V  (meaning  "END"), 
whichever  applies. 


Un  des  symboles  suivants  apparaitra  sur  la 
dernidre  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  seion  le 
cas:  le  symbols  — »*  signifie  "A  SUIVRE",  le 
symbols  V  signifie  "FIN". 


lire 


Maps,  plates,  charts,  etc.,  may  be  filmed  at 
different  reduction  ratios.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  are  filmed 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  as 
required.  The  following  diagrams  illustrate  the 
method: 


Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  pauvent  dtre 
filmfo  A  des  taux  de  reduction  diffirents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  dtre 
reprodult  en  un  seul  cliche,  il  est  filmi  A  partir 
de  Tangle  supArieur  gauche,  de  gauche  d  droite, 
et  de  haut  en  bas,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  nAcessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  mithode. 


3y  errata 
led  to 

int 

ine  pelure, 

a? on  d 


1  2  3 


32X 


1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

.,  rc 


JOURNAL 


OF  THH 


I 


EEYEREND  PETER  JACOBS,! 

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InbUii  if^UslejiHit  Pissionutji, 


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11«X  V    n 

M]      RICK  LAKE  TO  THE  HUDSON'S  BAY  TERRITORY,      | 

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AND     H  K  T  U  K  N  I  N  U 


COMMENCING   MAY,   1862. 


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REV.    PETER    JACOBS, 

INDIAN    MI8SI0NART. 


i 


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JOURNAL 


OF  THK 


EEVEREID  PETER  JACOBS, 


li;o>l 


RICE  LAKE  TO  THE  HUDSON'S   BAY  TERRITOUV, 


A  N  I)      It  KT  r  I!  N  I  N  (i  . 


COMMENCING    MAY,   1852. 


MITH 


A    BRIEF    ACCOUNT   OF   HIS   LIFE, 


AXn 


A  SHORT   HISTORY  OF  THE  WESl.KYAN  MISSION   IN 
THAT  COUNTRY. 


p  i:  B  T.  I  s  11 E I )  r  0  K   T  n  e   a  u  t  h  o  r  . 

'.^•Mi    M  r  1,  B  E  U  Jt  Y  -  ST  K  K  K  T. 

.1 857. 


\ 


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In 


Xl 


\ 


PETER  JACOBS'S  HISTORY  OF  HIMSELF. 


In  the  year  1824  I  first  heard  the  gospel  preached  by  tha 
Rev.  William  Case ;  before  that  time  I  was  a  heathen,  and 
so  were  all  the  tribes  of  Canada  West.  When  I  was  a 
lad,  I  never  heard  an  Indian  pray,  as  Christians  pray,  to 
the  Great  Being.  Our  people  believed  in  the  existence  of 
a  Great  Being,  the  maker  of  all  things ;  but  we  thought 
that  God  was  so  very  far  away  that  no  human  voice  could 
reach  him ;  and,  indeed,  we  all  believed  that  God  did 
not  meddle  with  the  affairs  of  the  children  of  men. 

I,  as  well  as  the  people  of  my  tribe,  was  very  cruel  and 
wicked,  because  there  was  no  fear  of  God  in  our  heart,  and 
no  fear  of  punishment ;  but  every  man  settles  his  own  af- 
fairs by  the  force  of  his  tomahawk ;  that  is  to  say,  by  bury- 
ing his  tomhawk  in  the  people's  heads,  and  that  ends  all 
disputes.  The  Indians  made  their  women  do  all  their 
work,  and  the  men  did  little  or  nothing  in  heathen  life. 
The  women  made  the  wigwam,  and  /emoved  it  when  neces- 
sary, carrying  it  on  their  backs ;  and  they  chopped  the  wood, 
and  carried  it  home  on  their  backs.  They  brought  the  veni- 
son home,  when  the  deer  was  killed  by  their  husbands ;  they 
dressed  the  skins  for  their  husbands'  clothes,  and  made  the 
coats,  shirts,  and  moccasins,  which  completes  the  Indian 
dress,  as  you  now  see  in  the  picture ; — all  was  done  by  the 
women.  Notwithstanding  the  poor  women  did  all  this, 
they  got  very  little  gratitude  from  their  heathen  husbands. 

I  will  just  relate  to  you  one  of  my  prayers  in  heathei^ 
life.  "  0  God  the  Sun,  I  beseech  you  to  hear  my  prayer, 
and  to  direct  my  steps  through  the  woods  in  that  direction 
where  the  deer  is  feeding,  that  t  may  get  near  him,  shoot 
him,  and  kill  him.  and  have  something  tq  eat  thereby.*' 


I'ETEU  JACOnS'S 


i  * 

;  a 


And  this  was  all  the  praj'er  I  ever  made.  There  is  nothing 
about  soul-salvation  in  that  prayer.  Some  pray  for  fish, 
or  ducks,  or  rabbits,  or  whatever  they  wish  to  get. 

At  length  the  missionary  came  and  began  to  preach 
about  Christ,  and  how  he  died  for  me ;  but  I  first  said, 
"  No ;  that  is  the  white  man's  God,  and  white  man's  reli- 
gion ;  and  that  God  would  not  have  anything  to  do  with 
the  Indians."  But  he  assured  me  God  would  save  me,  if  I 
would  believe  on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ;  and,  as  a  proof, 
he  read  portions  of  Scripture  to  me  again  and  again.  And 
then,  at  last,  I  begain  to  think  that  he  must  be  right,  and 
I  must  be  wrong,  because  he  read  the  '*  book  of  God  "  (as 
we  call  the  Bible)  to  me.  Then  I  began  to  pray,  for  the 
first  time,  in  English.  .  ")nly  then  knew  a  few  words.  I 
said,  "  0  God,  be  merciful  to  me,  poor  Indian  boy,  great 
sinner."  And  the  word  of  God  had  now  got  hold  of  my 
heart,  but  it  made  me  feel  very  sick  in  my  heart.  I  went 
to  bed,  and  I  could  not  sleep,  for  my  thoughts  troubled  me 
very  much.  Then  I  would  pray  the  words  over  and  over 
again,  and  got  more  and  more  sick  in  ray  heart.  I  was 
very  sorry  that  God  could  not  understand  my  Ojibway.  I 
thought  God  could  only  understand  English.  And  wlien  I 
was  praying  tears  came  spontaneously  from  my  eyes ;  and 
I  could  not  understand  this,  because  I  had  been  taught 
from  infancy  never  to  weep.  In  this  misery  I  passed  three 
or  four  weeks.  I  then  met  with  Peter  Jones,  who  was 
converted  a  few  months  before  me :  and  to  my  surprise,  I 
heard  him  return  thanks  at  meal  in  Ojibway.  This  was 
quite  enough  for  me.  I  now  saw  that  God  could  under- 
stand me  in  my  Ojibway,  and  therefore  went  far  into  the 
woods,  and  prayed,  in  the  Ojibway  tongue,  to  God,  and 
said :  "  0  God,  I  was  so  ignorant  and  blind  that  I  did  not 
know  that  thou  could st  understand  my  Ojibway  tongue  ! 
Now,  O  God,  I  beseech  thee  to  be  gracious  to  me,  a  sin- 
ner !  Take  away  this  sickness  that  I  now  feel  in  my  heart : 
for  all  my  sins  lay  very  heavy  in  my  heart.  Send  now  thy 
Holy  Spirit  to  come  work  in  my  heart !  Let  the  blood  of 
Christ  be  now  applied  to  my  heart,  that  all  my  sins  may 
depart ! " 

Though  I  could  now  pray  in  this  way  in  my  native  tongue, 
yet  God  did  not  seem  to  think  it  best  to  hear  my  prayers 
nt   this  time,  but  left  me  to  pass  many  miserable  nights. 


A 

I 
A 

he 


HISTORY   OF  HIMSELF. 


e  is  nothing 
ray  for  fish, 
jet. 

to  preach 
1  first  said, 
man's  reli- 

■  to  do  with 
iiVti  me,  if  I 
as  a  proof, 
s^ain.     And 

right,  and 
f  God  "  (as 
ray,  for  the 

■  words,     I 
boy,  great 

lold  of  my 
rt,     I  went 
roubled  me 
'r  and  over 
irt.     I  was 
jibway.     I 
Ind  wlien  t 
eyes;  and 
een  taught 
issed  three 
who  was 
surprise,  I 
This  was 
iild  under- 
ir  into  the 
God,  and 
I  did  not 
7  tongue  ! 
me,  a  sin- 
ny  heart  ; 
I  now  thy 
blood  of 
sins  may 

e  tongue, 
Y  prayers 
e  nights. 


And  I  cried  out  again  :  "  O  God,  I  will  not  let  thee  alone  ! 
I  shall  trouble  thee  with  my  prayers  till  thou  bless  me ! " 
And  at  last  God  heard  my  prayers,  and  he  took  away  this 
heavy  sickness  of  heart,  but  not  till  many  tears  had  been 
shed.  And  when  this  sickness  was  taken  away  from  my 
heart,  then  I  experienced  another  feeJng,  which  was  **  joy 
in  the  Holy  Ghost,"  which  was  indeea  "  full  of  glory."  My 
tongue  could  not  express  the  joy  I  then  felt,  I  could  say 
nothing  but,  "  Happy,  happy ! "  When  I  found  this  re- 
ligion of  Christ  so  sweet  in  the  heart  of  man,  I  wanted  all 
my  people  then  to  know  of  the  great  and  true  God ;  but 
they  all  said.  No  ;  that  I  was  wrong  ;  that  I  had  been  to  the 
white  man's  God,  and  not  the  Saviour  of  the  Indians.  But 
I  said,  that  God  was  the  Saviour  of  all  the  nations  of  the 
earth ;  for  I  know  in  my  own  heart  what  he  has  done  for 
me  ;  and  what  he  has  done  for  me  he  can  do  for  you.  And 
they  began  to  pray  for  mercy  and  the  forgiveness  of  their 
sins ;  and  they,  praying  in  strong  faith,  many  of  them  were 
converted  ;  and  now,  at  this  time,  there  are  hundreds  that 
are  converted  among  the  North  American  Indians,  I  was 
the  first  fruits  of  the  missionary  labors  in  my  tribe.  After 
was  I  converted,  I  became  a  prayer-leader,  and  afterward, 
when  the  Indians  were  settled  in  houses,  I  became  a  class- 
leader,  then  a  local  preacher. 

When  I  was  a  local  preacher,  I  used  to  preach  very 
long,  very  hard,  and  very  often.  Once  I  had  been  preach- 
ing till  eleven  at  night  to  the  converted  Indians  from  Lake 
Simcoe,  and  was  just  finishing,  when  the  Indians  said: 
"  When  we  were  heathen,  we  never  gave  up  drinking  the 
fire-waters  the  whole  night ;  and  why  should  we  now  go 
to  bed  ?  Why  should  we  not  go  on  singing,  and  praising 
God  till  daylight  ?  "  I  was  young  and  full  of  spirits  ;  and 
though  I  had  just  done  preaching,  I  began  again,  and 
preached  a  great  part  of  the  night. 

After  their  conversion,  the  Indians  were  settling  in 
houses  ;  and  I  built  myself  a  large  house,  and  then  began 
to  keep  a  store,  and  made  a  comfortable  living  by  selling 
things;  but  I  wished  to  be  a  missionary  to  the  tribes  of 
Indians  who  had  not  heard  the  gospel ;  and  I  offered  myself 
for  the  mission  work,  and  was  accepted,  sold  off  my  store, 
and  went  as  a  missionary. 

I  have  been   a  missioniu'v  for  sixteen  vears.     Twelve 


I 


i-^ 


PBTBR  JACOUB'6  HISTOllT  OV  HIMBBLV. 


>■   'i 


i  ■      ) 


years  I  have  been  in  the  Far  West,  among  the  Indians  in 
the  Hudson's  Bay  Territory. 

In  the  year  1842  I  came  to  England,  and  was  ordained 
in  the  Centenary -Hall,  and  in  1843  was  sent  back  to  the 
Hudson's  Bay  Territory.  I  cannot  tell  you  about  all  the 
tribes  of  Indians  that  I  have  visited,  it  would  take  too  long. 
I  have  preached  to  many  poor  Indians  in  their  heathen 
state,  and  they  have  become  Christians.  At  Norway  House 
I  iirst  formed  seven  classes,  and  helped  the  Indians  to  build 
eleven  houses ;  kept  school  for  children  and  married 
women.  This  mission  is  now  one  of  the  best  in  the  Hud- 
son's Bay  Territoiy.  There  are  more  than  three  hundred 
hearers,  fine  chapel,  and  eighty  children  in  the  school. 
Since  I  have  been  in  the  Hudson's  Bay  Territory  there 
has  been  slow  progress  made  among  the  Indians.  There 
have  not  been  many  converts ;  but  the  Indians  are  not  so 
wicked  as  they  were.  I  am  now  going  back,  and  my  heart 
is  altogether  bent  to  go  to  Hudson's  Bay. 

PETER  JACOBS. 


SLW, 


the  Indians  in 

i  was  ordained 
It  back  to  the 
I  about  all  the 

take  too  long. 

their  heathen 
Norway  House 
tidians  to  build 

and  married 
5t  in  the  Hud- 
three  hundred 
n  the  school, 
'erritory  there 
dians.  There 
ms  are  not  so 
and  my  heart 


JACOBS. 


JOUENAL 


or 


THE  REV.  PETER  JACOBS. 


Thursday,  May  6th,  1852. — This  morning  at  ten  o'clock 
I  left  this  fine  Wesleyan  Mission  at  Rice  Lake.  The  Indians 
of  this  mission  are  far  advanced  in  civilization ;  they  are  all 
dressed  like  Europeans ;  on  Sundays  the  congregation  dress 
very  well ;  the  women  have  fine  gowns  on,  &c. ;  and  the 
blanket,  which  thov  formerly  used  as  an  article  of  dress,  is 
now  seen  no  longer,  but  is  exchansfed  for  a  shawl.  There 
are  choirs  of  Indians  in  the  churches  who  sing  most  de- 
licrhtfullv  in  time  of  divine  service.  There  is  another  Wes- 
leyan  Mission,  seven  miles  from  this,  which  is  in  a  high 
state  of  civilization  ;  the  Indians  of  that  place  have  a  large 
academy,  built  of  brick,  where  young  people  are  taught  to  be 
of  use  as  missionaries  or  teachers  in  their  country  hereafter. 
The  majority  of  these  people  are  teetotalers ;  they  take  no 
wine  or  beer.  The  Rice  Lake  itself  is  one  of  the  most 
beautiful  lakes  in  Canada  West ;  it  is  about  thirty  miles  in 
length  and  three  miles  in  breadth.  In  it  wild  rice  grows, 
and  consequently  a  great  many  wild  ducks  of  all  sorts  fre- 
quent the  lake.  This  is  therefore  a  great  sporting  place 
for  English  gentlemen.  In  its  waters  abcund  muskinoonj, 
bahs,  eels,  and  other  sorts  of  fish  that  take  the  hook.  The 
lake  is  an  excellent  place  for  angling  and  trolling;  very 
often  gentlemen  come  from  Boston,  New- York,  and  other 
cities,  to  amuse  themselves  in  anfflina:  and  trollins:  for  weeks 
together.  Also  in  the  forest  abound  deer,  pheasants,  and 
rabbits,  which  make  good  sport  for  a  marksman.  The 
land  around  this  lake  is  of  good  quality  and  very  richly 
timbered  with  all  sorts  of  valuable  timber ;  it  is  well  set- 


'* 


*  :. 


{■  f. 


*     !i 


I  » 


8 


JOURNAL    OF   THK 


tied  by  English  fanners,  many  of  whom  are  independent 
gentlemen.  On  the  north  side  of  this  beautiful  lake  is  an 
Indian  village,  which  is  situated  on  high  banks.  A  beauti- 
ful scenery  is  presented  to  the  traveler's  eye  from  this  vil- 
lage, and  the  whole  length  of  the  lake  can  be  seen  with  one 
glance  of  the  eye.  The  beautiful  scenery  that  this  lake 
presents  would  afford  abundant  matter  to  the  traveler  for 
exercising  his  poetical  powers.  There  are  four  little  steam- 
boats on  the  lake,  which  are  employed  in  bringing  goods 
from  village  to  village,  and  taking  in  return  cargoes  of 
wheat  and  other  grain  from  Peterborough  ;  some  of  them 
are  also  employed  in  bringing  boards  for  the  American 
market :  by  this  it  may  be  seen  that  the  country  and  the 
lake  have  great  resources. 

At  12  o'clock  we  reached  Harris's  hotel,  and  landed 
there.  Mr.  Harris  himself  drove  us  in  his  carriage  to  Co- 
bourg,  which  is  twelve  miles  distant,  on  the  fine  plank  road. 
From  Cold  Springs  to  Cobourg  the  country  is  very  well 
settled,  and  many  farmers  live  on  the  road.  At  3  o'clock 
we  arrived  at  the  beautiful  town  of  Cobourg,  This  beauti- 
ful town  I  cannot  praise  too  highly ;  it  is  situated  on  ele- 
vated ground  and  is  very  healthy,  for  the  inhabitants  are 
refreshed  by  every  breeze  of  wind  that  blows  on  Lake 
Ontario.  In  this  place  are  many  fine  churches,  belonging 
to  different  denominations,  and  on  the  height  of  the  bank, 
at  the  north  end  of  the  town,  stands  conspicuously  the 
beautiful  college  called  Victoria  College,  belonging  to  the 
great  body  of  Wesleyans.  Within  its  walls  at  the  present 
time  are  about  seventy  students.  This  excellent  college 
has  already  produced  many  eminent  men ;  and  God  grant 
that  it  may  produce  more  excellent  statesmen  and  minis- 
ters who  shall  be  an  honor  to  the  province.  At  seven 
o'clock  .we  started  in  a  steamer  for  Toronto,  and  arrived 
there  during  the  night. 

Friday,  ^th,  1852, — I  went  about  from  place  to  place, 
getting  a  few  things  for  my  use  in  my  long  voyage.  The 
city  of  Toronto' is  one  of  the  most  splendid  cities  of  Canada 
West ;  it  is  still  rising,  and  will  continue  to  do  so ;  the 
buildings  are  generally  of  brick.  The  principal  street  for- 
merly was  King-street,  but  there  are  now  many  other 
beautiful  streets,  especially  Yonge-street.  Tiiere  are  many 
fine  larsfe  wholesale   stores,  as   well  as  many  fine   retail 


him. 


REV.   PETKR  JACOBS. 


9 


independent 
ful  lake  is  an 
A  beauti- 
rom  this  vil- 
leen  with  one 
hat  this  lake 

traveler  for 
•  little  steam- 
"g'"g  goods 
1  cargoes  of 
)me  of  them 
le  American 
itry  and  the 

and  landed 
■riage  to  Co- 
!  plank  road. 
is  very  well 
At  3  o'clock 
This  beauti- 
lated  on  ele- 
labitants  are 
ivs  on  Lake 
s,  belonging 
)f  the  bank, 
cuously  the 
ging  to  the 
the  present 
lent  college 
God  grant 
and  minis- 
At  seven 
and  arrived 

!e  to  place, 
rage.     The 

of  Canada 
do  so;  the 

street  for- 
lany  other 
3  are  many 
fine  letail 


stores.  In  the  city  are  four  Wesleyan  churches,  and  a  few 
small  chapels  in  the  vicinity  of  the  city  ;  there  are  also  many 
churches  of  other  denominations;  there  are  two  or  three 
colleges,  and  also  normal,  model,  .md  common  schools. 

The  land  extending  one  hundred  miles  around  this  city 
is  excellent,  rich,  and  well  covered  with  Aaluable  timber ; 
the  farmers  that  live  here  are  as  happy  as  princes. 

In  the  afternoon,  at  two  o'clock,  I  met  the  Rev.  Enoch 
Wood,  and  he  gave  me  £25  in  cash  for  my  traveling  ex- 
penses ;  and  after  I  received  his  blessing  and  prayers  for 
my  safety  and  preservation  in  the  journey,  I  parted  with 
him. 

Saturday,  8tli. — I  was  accompanied  thus  far  by  my  wife 
Elizabeth,  and  my  daughter  Mary,  and  the  little  baby,  and 
my  brother-in-law,  Andrew  Anderson,  and  at  seven  o'clock 
this  morning,  after  commending  each  other  to  God's  care, 
we  parted.  My  wife  and  family  then  took  a  steamer  for 
Cobourg  and  the  Rice  Lake.  I  myself  went  in  the  steamer 
for  Niagara  Falls,  and  the  Lake  Ontario  being  calm,  we 
were  soon  over  the  lake,  and  at  twelve  o'clock  we  arrived 
at  the  old  English  town  of  Niagara.  On  each  side  of  the 
river  there  is  a  garrison,  one  bel<^nging  to  the  English  and 
the  other  to  the  Americans.  All  the  soil  of  the  Niagara 
district  is  rich,  and  the  timber  is  valuable  that  gi-ows  here, 
such  as  the  black  walnut  and  the  cherry  ;  when  the  black 
walnut  is  sawed  into  boards  it  makes  chests  of  drawers  and 
tables,  and  beautiful  doois  for  the  houses  of  the  rich  ;  and 
when  cherry  trees  are  sawn,  the  Avood  appears  like  mahog- 
any. There  is  the  sugar  maple,  the  beech,  and  the  hick- 
ory, and  also  the  sassafras,  which  has  a  pleasant  scent. 

At  one  o'clock  we  arrived  at  Queenston,  and  took  the 
stages  for  the  Falls,  where  we  arrived  soon  after  two 
o'clock.  Here  we  spent  two  hours,  and  afterward  I  went 
down  to  see  the  greatest  fall  in  the  world.  The  cataract  is 
indeed  awfully  grand  ;  and  it  appeared  to  me  as  if  an  angry 
God  was  dwelling  beneath  it,  for  m}''  whole  frame  shook  as 
a  leaf  while  I  was  viewing  these  mighty  angry  Falls.  Now 
"t  is  no  wonder  that  my  forefathers,  in  by-gone  days,  should 
offer  up  sacrifices  at  the  foot  of  these  Falls ;  they  used  to 
come  and  pray  to  the  God  of  the  fall  to  bless  them  in  their 
hunt  and  to  prolong  their  life  and  that  of  their  children: 
for  every  Indian   believed    that   a   (rod  dwelt  under    this 


10 


JOURNAL    OV    TUB 


i  { 


'H 


'    "i, 


mighty  sheet  of  water ;  but  latterly  the  Wesleyan  mission* 
aries  have  taught  them  better  things,  and  told  them  that 
no  God  dwelt  there,  but  pointing  up  to  heaven,  directed 
them  to  pray  to  him  that  dwells  there.  They  now  no 
longer  come  to  pray  to  the  God  of  the  fall,  but  are  found 
daily  on  their  knees  at  the  foot  of  the  cross  of  Christ,  pray- 
ing through  him  that  God  might  be  merciful  unto  them 
sinners,  and  keep  them  in  his  own  care. 

In  conclusion,  I  would  just  say  that  English  gentlemen 
and  ladies  would  be  well  repaid  if  they  would  come  and 
see  the  Falls  of  Niagara  while  they  are  in  America.  There 
are  five  or  six  large  hotels  by  the  Falls,  some  of  which  will 
contain  about  two  hundred  boarders  ;  and  there  are  also 
hotels  of  smaller  classes,  so  that  a  gentleman  can  be 
boarded  at  from  one  dollar  to  four  dollars  a  day  ;  for  these 
large  hotels  are  as  fashionable  and  as  great  as  any  of  the 
fashionable  hotels  in  the  city  of  New-York. 

At  four  o'clock,  took  the  railway  cars,  and  reached  Buf- 
falo in  a  very  short  tim.e.  I  passed  over  soil  very  rich  and 
well  timbered.  The  city  of  Buffalo  is  a  very  important 
and  flourishing  city :  it  is  situated  at  the  foot  of  Lake  Erie, 
and  it  has  a  very  fine  harbor,  where  all  the  western  vessels 
and  steamers  come  :  more  than  a  dozen  steamers  leave  its 
wharves  every  day  ;  that  is  to  say,  morning  and  evening. 
The  great  Erie  Canal  ends  here,  and  the  New-York  and 
Albany  Railroad  ends  here  also ;  and  there  are  other  rail- 
roads that  end  here.  There  is  a  railroad  that  comes  from 
the  Southern  States,  and  there  is  another  that  goes  through 
the  city  of  Cleveland  and  other  cities  of  the  West  to  Cin- 
cinnati, so  that  the  city  of  Buffalo  is  becoming  an  import- 
ant city :  it  is  a  great  city  of  business.  The  main  street 
of  BufRilo  is  a  beautiful  street,  and  there  are  many  fine 
buildings  there,  and  many  churches  of  different  denomina- 
tions, three  of  which  belong  to  the  Episcopal  Methodists. 
I  put  up  at  the  Western  Hotel. 

Sunday,  9th. — At  eleven  o'clock,  I  went  to  one  of  the 
Methodist  chapels,  and  at  three  o'clock  I  went  to  the  same 
chapel.  At  six  o'clock  in  the  evening  I  preached  in  the 
stone  church  called  the  Niagara  Church,  to  the  edification 
of  a  large  congregation.  After  divine  service  many  of  the 
principal  men  of  the  congregation  gave  me  thanks  for  my 
preaching,  and  the  minister  said  to  me  that  he  had  never 


hearc 

orate 

just 

pear^ 

prea(| 

that 

the 
•weni 
hunc 
ers, 
the 
finisl 
nine 
brok 
wou 
steal 
and 
reac 
mile 
that 
time 
the 
up  i 
dee] 
oft 
be  ! 
ing 
\        an<3 
ani 
vid 
I        th( 

i      t\v 

fe^ 
hi 
h( 
of 
h 
s< 
1( 

\ 


'* 


nSr.    PETXR   .TACOBa. 


11 


[^esleyan  mission. 

told  them  that 
heaven,  directed 

They  now  no 
U  but  are  found 
of  Christ,  pray, 
ciful  unto  them 

;Iish  gentlemen 
ould  come  and 
merica.     There 
le  of  which  will 
there  are  also 
tieman  can  be 
day ;  for  these 
as  any  of  the 

I  reached  Buf- 
^<iry  rich  and 

^'ery  important 
of  Lake  Erie, 

(western  vessels 

fners  leave  its 

■  and  evening. 

ew-York  and 

»'e  other  rail- 

t  comes  from 

goes  throuo-h 

^est  to  Cm- 

?  an  import- 
main  street 

e  many  fine 

t  denomina- 

Methodists. 

'  one  of  the 
to  the  same 
ched  in  the 
'  edification 
"any  of  the 
31  ks  for  my 
had  never 


I 


heard  an  Indian  preach  like  me,  and  that  I  was  a  ereat 
orator :  however,  I  did  not  stand  up  to  dispute  with  him,  I 
just  allowed  him  to  tell  his  own  opinions  freely.  It  ap- 
pears that  two  Sabbaths  before  this  the  Rev.  Peter  Jones 
preached  in  the  same  church,  and  the  minister  told  me 
that  the  first  part  of  my  sermon  was  very  much  like  his. 

Monday,  lOth. — In  the  evening  at  eight  o'clock,  after 
the  railway  cars  came  in  from  New- York  and  Albany,  I 
went  on  board  the  Ocean  steamer,  which  had  about  three 
hundred  passengers — gentlemen  and  ladies.  The  steam- 
ers, especially  the  Mayflower,  that  run  in  connection  with 
the  railroads  of  the  West,  are  most  splendid  and  highly 
finished  steamers ;  their  cabins  are  like  palace-parlors.  At 
nine  o'clock  our  Ocean  began  to  move  through  fields  of 
broken  ice.  I  was  very  much  afraid  that  her  paddles 
would  be  broken ;  however,  we  got  through  safely.  The 
steamer  then  ran  through  the  middle  of  Lake  Erie  all  night 
and  half  a  day  without  staying  at  any  harbor,  until  we 
reached  the  city  of  Detroit,  which  is  about  three  hundred 
miles.  The  passengers  in  the  steamer  were  so  numerous 
that  they  could  not  all  come  to  the  first  table.  At  meal 
times  some  gentlemen,  fearing  that  they  could  not  come  to 
the  first  table,  practiced  this  artiBce.  They  generally  took 
up  a  newspaper  and  began  to  read,  in  pretence  of  being 
deeply  engaged  in  reading,  and  seated  themselves  in  front 
of  the  plates,  and  so  be  in  readiness  when  the  signal  would 
be  given,  to  take  their  seats  at  the  table ;  but  notwithstand- 
ing their  acuteness  they  would  sometimes  lose  their  seats 
and  plates  in  the  following  manner :  The  ladies  (these  lower 
angels)  as  everybody  knows,  must  have  their  seats  pro- 
vided for  them  at  all  risks,  as  the  waiters  always  informed 
the  ladies  first  when  the  meals  were  ready,  and  afterward 
the  gentlemen ;  but  sometimes  a  few  of  the  ladies  were  a 
few  minutes  too  late ;  and  a  gentleman  who  had  been 
hitherto  seated  comfortably  before  a  dish  of  some  rich  sort, 
hearing  the  approaching  steps  of  a  lady  and  the  rustling 
of  a  silk  gown,  jumps  up  on  his  two  feet,  and  to  show  that 
he  is  a  highly  polished  gentleman,  he  offers  the  lady  his 
seat  and  walks  away,  as  many  do,  grudgingly,  to  wait  a 
long  hour  for  the  next  table.  But  on  these  occasions, 
when  I  find  myself  seated  so  comfortably,  I  generally  ap- 
pear to  be  deaf  to  the  sound  of  the  approaching  steps  of 


•  a  1  * 


If 


I! 


'I! 

! 


•     V. 


12 


JOURNAL    OF    THE 


these  lower  angels,  and  hasten  to  ;ret  some  article  on  my 
plate,  and  begin  to  eat  a  mouthful  or  two,  tliat  none  of 
these  beauties  would  desire  to  take  my  seat  and  plate. 
The  victuals  that  lay  on  the  table  Avere  of  all  sorts,  and  the 
sweetmeats  were  too  various  to  enumerate ;  all  that  I  can 
say  about  them  is  that  they  were  very  line. 

I  know  the  shores  of  Lake  Erie  well  on  the  British  and 
American  sides.  Thev  incline  to  be  flat.  The  soil  is  of 
clay,  and  some  parts  of  it  are  sandy ;  but,  taking  it  alto- 
gether, both  sides  of  the  lake  are  good  agricultural  coun- 
tries, and  heavily  timbered.  In  its  forests,  timber  is  found 
of  all  sorts.  There  are  a  few  ports  on  the  British  side,  and 
small  villages ;  but,  on  the  American  side,  ports  are  more 
numerous.  There  are  even  two  or  three  cities.  The  city 
of  Cleveland  is  the  most  beautiful  city  on  Lake  Erie.  It  is 
situated  on  a  high  bank,  and  has  a  fine  view  of  Lake  Erie. 
Canals  and  railroads  come  into  this  city  from  all  parts  of 
the  country,  as  well  as  vessels  and  steamers.  This  city  is 
doing  a  great  deal  of  business.  There  are  other  small 
cities  on  the  shores  of  the  lake  belonging  to  the  Americans. 
The  lake  itself  is  very  shallow,  and,  consequently,  when 
the  wind  blows  high  it  is  very  rough.  Its  waters  abound 
with  white  fish,  salmon  trout,  and  other  fish.  The  best 
sorts  of  fish  are  the  white  fish  and  trout.  The  entrance 
of  Detroit  River  is  garrisoned  by  the  British.  The  village 
and  the  garrison  are  called  Amherstburgh.  The  scenery 
around  this  village  is  beautiful,  and  the  country  is  level, 
and  abounds  with  timber  of  all  sorts.  The  whole  length 
of  Detroit  River  is  beautiful,  and  the  country  on  each  side 
of  it  is  picturesque,  especially  the  Canadian  side.  The 
river  is  about  thirty  or  forty  miles  in  length,  and  is  a  beau- 
tiful river.  Now  comes  the  city  of  Detroit.  It  was  for- 
merly a  French  city,  but  now  it  belongs  to  the  Ameri- 
cans, and  is  the  capital  of  Michigan.  It  has  many  fine 
buildings  and  many  fine  streets.  It  is  becoming  very  im- 
portant, and  is  a  great  city  of  business  in  the  West.  The 
railroad  to  Chicago  begins  here,  so  that  one  going  thither 
might  go  by  the  railroad,  or  around  by  the  lakes  in  a  steamer. 
The  word  Chicago  is  a  corruptible  form  of  the  word  She- 
kakong,  which  means  the  "  place  of  a  shunk." 

Opposite  Detroit  is  a  little  village  called  Sandwich,  on 
the  British  side,  where  there  is  a  British  post-ofiice.     The 


1 


:ount 
all  tl 
land 
very 
catcl 


in  tA 


i:i:v.   VKiEU  jAcous. 


13 


article  on  my 

tlmt  none  of 

Jat  and  plate. 

sorts,  and  the 

a]]  tliat  I  can 

!ie  Britisli  and 
The  soil  is  of 
aking  it  alto- 
ultural  coun- 
nber  is  found 
itish  side,  and 
)its  are  more 
3s.     The  city 
e  Erie.     It  is 
of  Lake  Erie, 
all  parts  of 
This  city  is 
other  small 
s  Americans, 
lently,  when 
^ters  abound 
^-     The  Jbest 
'he  entrance 
The  village 
rhe  scenery 
itry  is  level, 
bole  length 
)n  each  side 
side.     The 
1  is  a  beau- 
tt  was  for- 
the  Ameri- 
many  fine 
g  very  im- 
Vest.     The 
ing  thither 
a  steamer, 
word  She- 

idwich,  on 
fice.     The 


country  around  it  appea.'s  to  be  a  line  farming  country; 
all  the  ground  in  the  district  of  Detroit  is  flat,  and  the 
land  is  well  timbered  with  all  sorts  of  timber,  but  it  is  a 
very  bad  country  for  the  fever.  If  any  person  wishes  to 
catch  it  he  may  go  there  in  summer. 

Wednesday,  12//t. — Remained  all  day  in  the  city,  saw 
nothing  worth  relating ;  but  I  shall  relate  the  following 
circumstance.  As  I  was  passing  one  of  the  grog-shops  in 
the  streets  I  heard  a  man  talk  very  roughly,  and  he  swore 
to  the  master  of  the  house  that  if  he  did  not  give  him  an- 
other glass  of  whisky,  he  would  lay  him  flat  on  the  ground 
in  two  seconds ;  the  landlord  replied,  "  Not  a  drop  will  you 
get."  The  tall  Yankee  that  I  now  got  a  sight  of,  cursed 
and  swore  at  the  master  that  if  he  did  not  give  him  another 
glass  he  would  flatten  him  like  a  pancake  in  two  seconds, 
at  the  same  time  showing  his  fist,  now  holding  it  near  the 
end  of  the  master's  nose.  The  tall  Yankee  then  said,  "  You 
are  an  ungrateful  being,  I  have  spent  many  dollars  here, 
and  you  will  not  give  me  another  glass;"  the  landlord 
then  said,  "No."  He  was  of  very  little  stature,  and  the 
Yankee  could  have  had  no  trouble  in  giving  the  landlord  a 
good  thrashing.  However,  lio  was  just  going  to  pounce  upon 
him  when  a  servant  man  came  out  from  one  of  the  rooms, 
and  said  to  the  tall  Yankee,  "  I  guess  you  better  walk  out  of 
this."  The  tall  Yankee  showed  his  fist  again,  and  the  ser- 
vant by  this  time  got  hold  of  him  by  the  collar,  and  drag- 
ged him  out  to  the  street  and  gave  him  a  blow  under  the 
ear,  which  stupefied  the  tall  Yankee,  and  made  him  stand 
speechless  for  a  long  time.  This  was  all  that  was  done 
unto  him,  and  he  never  spoke  again,  but  quietly  walked 
away.     I  think  that  the  blow  did  him  a  great  deal  of  good. 

Thursday,  \Zth. — Before  daylight  our  steamer  London 
was  oflF,  and  passed  the  little  Lake  St.  Clair,  before  I  was  from 
my  cabin  for  breakfast.  The  Lake  St.  Clair  is  a  small  lake, 
of  about  thirty  or  more  miles  in  circumference ;  all  its  banks 
are  very  low,  but  the  land  is  good  and  heavily  timbered. 
There  are  many  farms  around  the  lake.  The  St.  Clair 
River  is  a  very  fine  river  ;  it  has  very  fine  banks ;  the  land 
is  good  and  possesses  much  valuable  timber  of  all  sorts. 
The  only  fault  about  the  country  further  back  is,  that  it 
inclines  to  be  swampy.  In  the  interior  the  inhabitants 
Buffer  much  in  the  summer  from  fever  and  ague.    Thousands, 


14 


JOCRNAL  OV   THK 


"  In 

•i  rr 


4i       '  ■ 
i'1       If' 


r 


•! 


^  l!. 


and  I  may  say  millions  of  all  kinds  of  fish  abound  in  the 
river ;  the  fish  are  caught  by  means  of  the  spear,  the  hook, 
the  net,  and  seine.  In  the  woods  further  back  from  the  river 
abound  deer,  bears,  rabbits,  elks,  partridges,  wild  turkeys, 
and  other  animals.  The  marshes  abound  with  ducks.  The 
St.  Clair  River  is  about  sixty  miles  in  length,  and  it  has 
many  fine  villages  on  each  side  of  the  river.  Farmers  set- 
tle on  both  sides.  The  east  side  belongs  to  the  English, 
and  the  west  to  the  Americans.  The  river  runs  from  north 
to  south.  By  the  appearance  of  the  houses  the  farmers 
are  well  off.  The  whole  of  the  country  that  I  have  now 
traveled  over  for  three  hundred  miles,  is  very  good  for  wheat 
and  other  grain,  wild  and  cultivated  fruits  of  all  sorts,  such 
as  apples,  peaches  and  plums  ;  and  there  are  also  in  some 
parts  of  the  Western  Province  wild  crab-apples.  At  the  in- 
let of  the  River  of  St.  Clair  are  two  villages,  the  English 
village  is  called  Port  Sarnia,  but  the  American  village  op- 
posite is  much  larger  than  the  English.  On  the  English 
side,  adjoining  Port  Sarnia,  we  have  an  Indian  Wesleyan 
Mission ;  as  the  steamboat  went  along  close  by  the  Indian 
Mission,  I  perceived  that  the  Indians,  and  their  wives,  and 
their  children,  appeared  to  be  well  dressed.  They  wore 
busily  employed  in  their  agricultural  operations,  and  some 
of  them  were  collecting  wood  for  the  steamboats.  The  In- 
dians appear  to  be  well  off.  I  should  have  been  glad  to 
have  spent  a  day  with  them.  St.  Clair  village  appears  to 
be  healthy,  as  it  is  daily  refreshed  by  the  breezes  that  blow 
on  Lake  Huron.  The  clay  of  the  land  is  mixed  with  sand. 
About  a  mile  from  this  village,  toward  the  lake,  there  are 
beautiful  sandy  plains,  with  a  few  oak  trees  standing  here 
and  there  ;  it  would  be  an  excellent  place  for  a  gentleman 
to  live  in.  At  the  entrance  of  the  river  is  a  beautiful  sandy 
beach,  where  the  fishermen  catch  thousands  and  thousands 
of  white  fish  in  the  fall.  On  the  east  side  of  Lake  Huron, 
that  is  toward  the  town  of  Goderich  and  Saugeeng,  I  have 
traveled  by  land,  and  I  found  the  soil  very  good.  The  trees 
that  grow  on  it  are  the  oak,  beech,  maple,  pine,  and  other 
trees,  which  make  valuable  timber.  This  is  a  fine  country 
for  farmers.  The  country  generally  inclines  to  be  flat,  but 
on  the  American  side,  which  runs  north-west,  the  land 
is  excellent,  and  much  heavy  timber  is  obtained  from  the 
land. 


Atl 

our  s) 

Fr 

progt 
tance| 
heavj 
emah| 
heavj 
abouH 
Sc 
mornj 
glad 
inaw 
than 
pitoul 
lanni| 
The 


^  ■v-««tel\5aBrrKt  - 


Iil.;V.  I'ETKIl  .iAcon«. 


16 


ish  abound  in  the 
e  spear,  the  hook, 
>«ck  from  the  river 
?es,  wild  turkeys 
with  ducks.    The 
■ngth,  and  it  has 
''"•     Farmers  set- 
'  to  the  English, 
'  runs  from  north 
ises  the  farmers 
hat  I  have  now 
^,good  for  wheat 
'^  all  sorts,  such 
are  also  in  some 
'^es.   At  the  in- 
•es,  the  English 
can  village  op- 
)n  the  English 
dian  Wesleyan 
■  by  the  Indian 
leir  wives,  and 
^-     They  were 
ons,  and  some 
5ats.     The  In- 
'  been  glad  to 
?e  appears  to 
'zes  that  blow 
ed  with  sand, 
ke,  there  are 
itanding  here 
a  jgentleman 
autiful  sandy 
id  thousand's 
.ake  Huron, 
2eng,  I  have 
•    The  trees 
I,  and  other 
ine  country 
f^e  flat,  but 
'  the  land 
^  from  the 


At  6  o'clofk  in  thu  evcimij^  we  were  fairly  out  to  sea,  and 
our  steamer  ran  all  right.     Tlie  night  was  very  calm. 

Friday,  \Mh.  Culm  day.  Our  steamer  made  great 
progress.  We  saw  the  land  all  day  on  the  left  at  a  dis- 
tance. At  4  o'clock  wo  were  near  Mackinaw,  and  met  a 
heavy  fog.  Mackinaw  comes  from  an  Indian  word  Meshen- 
emahkenoong,  the  immense  turtle.  On  account  of  the 
heavy  fog  our  steamer  lost  its  way,  and  was  wandering 
about  during  the  night, 

Saturday,  itth,  1852.  When  it  became  clear  in  the 
morning  we  were  near  Mackinaw;  the  passengers  were 
glad  that  they  did  not  run  ashore  during  the  night.  Mack- 
inaw is  a  high,  splendid  island  ;  many  parts  of  it  are  more 
than  a  hundred  feet  high,  and  some  parts  are  very  preci- 
pitous. The  top  of  the  island  is  flat,  and  is  good  for 
farming.  There  is  an  American  garrison  on  the  summit. 
The  town  of  Mackinaw  lies  in  a  bay  at  the  foot  of  the  high 
ground.  The  lower  classes  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  island 
support  themselves  principally  by  fishing ;  for  white  fish 
and  salmon  trout  are  caught  here  in  great  abundance  in  all 
seasons  of  the  year,  and  especially  in  the  fall.  The  town 
has  a  few  stores  and  grog-shops,  and  there  is  a  new  hotel 
at  the  old  Presbyterian  Mission  at  the  point.  There  is  a 
Romish  church  here  and  a  Presbyterian  church.  Travelers, 
when  they  are  on  the  summit  of  the  island,  have  a  most 
splendid  view  of  the  straits  of  Michigan,  and  the  shores  and 
islands  on  the  Avest ;  and  on  the  east  side  they  have  a  fine 
view  of  Lake  Huron  and  its  islands.  There  is  a  breeze 
constantly  passing  and  repassing  over  the  island.  This  is 
the  place  for  invalids  to  come  and  improve  their  health. 

We  were  at  this  beautiful  harbor  for  an  hour,  and  the 
men  took  in  their  wood  for  the  boat ;  after  this,  we  were 
off  again  for  the  Sault.  When  we  were  about  eight  miles 
from  Mackinaw,  toward  the  east,  we  beheld  a  steamer 
in  a  bay  in  difficulty.  Her  bows  were  high  and  dry  upon 
the  sandy  beach ;  she  raised  a  signal  of  distress  for  our 
steamer,  and  when  we  arrived  there  most  of  the  passengers, 
and  especially  the  females,  were  crying.  I  do  not  suppose 
they  knew  why  they  cried.  After  a  loss  of  time  for  an 
hour,  the  London  steamer  got  the  other  steamer  oflF  by  the 
use  of  her  cable  ropes  and  chains.  The  steamer  had  about 
three  hundred  passengers ;  she  was  one  of  the  large  steam- 


',  I' 


10 


.lOtUNAL    OF    THE 


en,  "When  they  were  off,  they  gave  our  captain  three 
cheers.  Poor  fellows  !  They  tht'n  went  away  to  Chicago. 
It  is  said  by  the  passenf^ers  that  our  captain  will  get  about 
four  hundred  dollars  for  his  trouble. 

At  noon  we  rounded  the  detour,  on  the  west  side  of 
Drummond's  Island,  which  is  about  thirty  rniles  from 
Mackinaw,  and  forty  miles  from  the  Sault  UIu^  islands 
now  assume  a  ditferent  aspect  from  what  we  we.'-e  accus- 
tomed to  see  of  tine  rich  lands.  At  this  place,  wherever 
you  direct  your  eye,  you  see  tlio  granite  stones  showing 
their  teeth  to  you ;  and  the  timber  that  you  see  is  scrubby 
pine,  poplar,  and  white  birch.  1  have  traveled  again  and 
again  on  the  north  shore  of  Lake  Huron,  and  I  am  sorry  to 
say,  that  the  islands  and  the  main  land  on  this  side  arc 
nothing  but  barren  rocks.  Very  little  good  soil,  if  there  is 
any,  is  found  in  the  valleys.  Manitoulin  Island  is  t'le  only 
exception  to  the  bad  land,  and  it  is  only  tho  soil  u.i  the 
east  half  side  of  the  island  which  is  good.  Maple  and 
other  hard  timber  grow  on  this  island.  It  is  about  seventy 
miles  in  length.  The  Church  Missionary  Socicjty,  and  the 
Romish  Church,  have  missions  on  the  good  part  of  the 
island.  At  the  Church  Mission,  in  one  of  the  bays  of  the 
island,  are  government  stores,  and  a  government  Indian 
Agent  resides  here,  who  gives  annual  presents  to  the  In- 
dians, who  assemble  in  hundreds  at  this  place.  The  In- 
dians subsist  by  fishing  in  the  summer,  and  procuring  furs 
in  the  winter,  which  they  give  in  exchange  for  clothing. 

We  now  passed  on  the  south  side  of  St.  Joseph's  Island, 
which  is  about  thirty  miles  in  length.  Some  parts  of  the 
soil  are  good,  maple  and  other  hard  timber  growing  there- 
on ;  but  other  parts  are  rocky  and  mountainous.  One  Ma- 
jor Raines  and  some  other  gentlemen  are  trying  to  colonize 
the  lands.  The  Indians  say  that  the  mountains  of  this  isl- 
und  have  rich  copper  mines,  but  they  do  not  show  the  veins 
of  copper  ore  to  the  white  man  for  fear  of  making  the  god 
of  the  copper  mine  angry,  and  thus  losing  their  live?  by  it. 
The  Indians  are  very  superstitious  respecting  all  mmcy,  for 
they  beheve  that  there  is  a  god  over  e^  en  mine.  On  one 
of  the  beautiful  points  of  the  island  there  stands  the  re- 
mains of  an  old  British  fort :  this  must  have  been  a  fine 
place  when  the  troops  were  here.  We  now  passed  by  many 
inferior  islands  ;  and  I  found  the  country  had  a  dismal  ap- 


'(*,!"■  •'<mii*~'  ■"' 


REV.    l-KIKU    JAC0B8. 


17 


our  captain  three 
fiwfiy  to  Chicago. 
m  will  get  about 

the.  west  side  of 
>|f' y  rnWes  from 
I'le  islands 
'  we  were  accus- 

place,  wlierover 

Ntones  showing 
•»  see  is  scrubby 
ivoled  again  and 
id  I  am  sorry  to 

on  this  side  are 
^  «oil,  if  there  is 
land  is  t'le  onlv 

the  soil  uu  the 
Ofl.    Maple  and 
s  about  seventy 
5oci(!ty,  and  th*e 
»od  part  of  the 
he  bays  n{  the 
Jrnment  Indian 
f'nts  to  the  In- 
)lace.    The  In- 
procuring  furs 
e  for  clothing, 
oseph's  Island, 
«  parts  of  the 
growing  thei-e- 
3"s.    One  Ma- 
jng  to  colonize 
ins  of  this  isl- 
ihow  the  veins 
aking  the  god 
3ir  livep  by  it. 
all  minr5.  for 
ine.    On  one 
tands  the  re- 
-  been  a  fine 
'sed  by  many 
a  dismal  ap- 


pearance. At  sunset  we  reached  the  Garden  River ;  and 
nere  the  WesleyanH  are  forming  an  Indian  Mission,  and 
there  are  alroady  manv  little  houses  on  the  banks,  and 
many  little  gardens.  1  think  in  a  few  years  this  will  be  an 
important  mission.  About  two  or  three  miles  back  from 
tlu!  mission  there  are  mountainous  plac(!S,  jutting  out  their 
rugged  peaks,  whicli  seem  to  defy  the  farmer,  and  say, 
"  There  is  no  farming  here." 

At  0  o'clock  we  anchored  at  th(^  American  town  of  St. 
Mary's,  which  lies  at  the  foot  of  the  Falls  of  St.  Mary's. 
The  new  town  of  St.  Mary's  is  rising  very  fast  and  becom- 
ing important.  It  has  improved  very  much  since;  I  was 
iiere,  in  1836,  as  missionary  to  the  Sault  Indians,  on  the 
.Vmerican  side.  I  was  glad  to  find  many  of  my  old  con- 
verts here,  and  that  they  were  still  faithful,  and  serving 
the  Lord  their  God.  Their  mission  has  been  removed  from 
the  Sault  to  a  place  ten  miles  above  it,  where  the  Indians 
are  now  cultivating  the  soil.  The  town  of  St.  Mary's  has  a 
few  large  stores  and  many  small  oncis,  two  fine  hotels, 
and  a  few  inns  and  small  grog-shops.  The  missionaries 
here  are  Episcopal  Methodists,  Baptists,  and  Romish  priests. 
The  American  government  are  proposing  to  make  a  canal 
hen;,  which  will  be  about  three  quarters  of  a  mih;  in  length. 
The  canal  is  to  be  one  hundred  feet  wide  at  the  surface, 
seventy-five  at  bottom,  and  twelve  feet  deep ;  there  are  to 
be  two  locks,  three  hundred  and  twenty-five  feet  in  length 
and  seventy-five  feet  in  width.  The  probable  cost  will  be  less 
than  half  a  million  of  dollars.  The  rapids,  or  as  it  is  called 
the  Fall  of  St.  Mary's,  has  a  descent  of  tweii  \'-one  feet. 
Canoes  and  boats  can  run  down  the  rapids  without  any 
harm.  The  width  of  these  rapids  is  nearly  one  mile.  Near 
the  foot  of  the  fall  there  is  an  excellent  fishery ;  Indians 
and  half-breeds  scoop  the  finest  white  fish  in  all  the  seasons 
of  the  year.  They  are  the  most  excellent  fish  in  the  coun- 
try. O  how  I  feasted  on  them  while  I  remained  here  ! 
The  Indians  and  half-breeds  make  a  great  deal  of  money 
by  tiieir  fish.  The  Honorable  Hudson's  Bay  Company  have 
an  establishment  on  the*  other  side  of  the  river.  One  or 
two  or  more  steamers,  as  well  as  sailing  vessels,  come  here 
once  every  week,  from  Buffalo,  Cleveland,  Detroit,  and  Pen- 
etaiiguishine,  or  Penahtahwahngosheeng,  the  latter  being 
an  Indian  word,  meaning  the  tumbling  sand-banks.     Our 


i 


18 


JOURNAL  \)P  THB 


■% 


\  ■    ' 


Bteamer  London  landed  here  one  hundred  and  fifty  passen- 
gers, and  the  majority  of  them  have  gone  to  the  mines  of 
Lake  Superior. 

The  population  of  those  now  engaged  in  the  mines  of 
Lake  Superior  is  eight  thousand,  and  one  thousand  are  in 
commercial  business.     This  is  very  well  for  Lake  Superior. 

Sunday,  I6th. — I  went  to  hear  the  Episcopal  clergyman, 
Dr.  Oraeara,  preach  this  morning ;  he  read  his  sermon,  so 
and  so.  He  is  rather  defective  in  his  delivery.  In  the 
evening  I  gave  a  short  exhortation  to  those  who  were 
present  in  the  same  chapel.  It  rained  very  hard  in  the 
evening,  and  the  whole  of  the  next  day — that  is  the  l7th — 
so  that  I  saw  very  little  of  Sault  Ste.  Marie  that  day.  The 
Methodist  clergyman  of  this  place  is  a  good  man :  he  is 
the  superintendent  of  the  Indian  Missions  in  these  parts. 
He  was  just  now  about  to  take  a  tour  to  visit  his  missions 
on  the  southern  shore  of  Lake  Superior,  Fondulac,  Sandy 
Lake,  and  Red  Lake. 

Tuesday,  18ih. — The  day  was  fine.  I  dined  with  John 
Johnston,  Esquire,  and  his  lady,  and  I  found  them  affable 
and  kind.  This  John  Johnston  is  a  son  of  the  late  great 
John  Johnston  of  Sault  Ste.  Marie.  After  dinner,  the  Hud- 
son's Bay  canoes  arrived.  The  number  of  men  in  -the 
canoes  was  about  thirty  ;  they  had  a  young  clerk  with  them 
named  Mr.  Taylor. 

Wednesday/,  \9th. — At  ten  o'clock  I  left  my  hotel  at 
Sault  Ste.  Marie,  and  went  over  to  the  other  side  of  the 
river,  to  the  Hudson's  Bay  House,  and  after  being  furnished 
with  provisions,  we  were  at  the  further  side  of  the  Portage 
at  two  o'clock.  The  number  of  passengers  now  in  the 
canoes,  excluding  myself,  was  two,  viz  :  Francis  Ermatinger, 
Esquire,  chief  trader,  and  young  Mr.  Taylor.  The  Cana- 
dians and  Iriquois  now  pushed  oft'  and  gave  us  some  of 
their  beautiful  Canadian  canoe  songs.  We  encamped  at  a 
place  about  fifteen  miles  from  the  Sault,  called  Point  Pine. 
This  was  a  fine  encampment  for  us.  The  soil  of  this  place 
is  of  light  sand,  and  the  timber  is  nothing  but  pine ;  and 
indeed  I  may  say  here  in  my  Jourifal — Farewell,  ye  beauti- 
ful lands  of  Canada,  we  shall  not  see  you  for  many  a  long 
day. 

Thursday,  20th. — At  four  o'clock  we  started,  and  break- 
fasted at  the  Gros  Cap,  eighteen  miles  from  our  encamp- 


'■t 


RRV.  !'!:it;r  ,iAc:onfl. 


19 


and  fifty  passen- 
3  to  the  mines  of 

in  tiie  mines  of 
thousand  are  in 
•r  Lake  Superior, 
copal  clergyman, 
id  his  sermon,  so 
lelivery.     In  the 
those  who  were 
-ery  hard  in  the 
lat  is  the  I7th— 
;  tliat  day.    The 
ood  man:  he  is 
in  these  parts, 
isit  his  missions 
ondulac,  Sandy 

lined  with  John 
nd  them  affable 
the  late  great 
inner,  the  Hud- 
5f  men  in  the 
;lerk  with  tliem 

my  hotel  at 
ler  side  of  the 
3eing  furnished 
of  the  Portag-e 
■s  now  in  the 
is  Ermatinger, 
'.     The  Cana- 
pe us  some  of 
ncamped  at  a 
d  Point  Pine. 
1  of  this  place 
>ufc  pine;  and 
2ll,  ye  beauti- 
many  a  long 

d,  and  break - 
our  encamp- 


ment. It  is  the  first  point  ^ihat  projects  out  into  the  lake, 
and  it  has  a  beautiful  mountain  on  it.  Many  gentlemen 
and  ladies  come  here  to  the  mountain  to  have  a  view  of  the 
splendid  Lake  Superior,  and  then  return  to  their  eastern 
homes.  After  breakfast,  the  men  pulled  away  across  a 
long  traverse  of  fifteen  miles,  called  Gooley's  Bay,  and  dined 
on  an  island  in  the  traverse.  iVfter  dinner,  we  hoisted  sail, 
and  sailed  very  well  this  day.  At  five  o'clock  we  passed 
the  Lake  Superior  mines;  and  there  we  saw  twenty  or 
thirty  houses,  one  or  two  of  which  are  very  large.  At  seven 
o'clock  we  went  into  Montreal  River,  and  encamped  in  it. 
We  made  about  sixty  miles  this  day.  The  face  of  the 
country  is  a  mass  of  rocks ;  we  passed  very  little  good 
hind  to-dav :  at  Gooley's  Bav  we  saw  some  o-ood  land, 
for  there  arc  sugar  maple  trees  growing  there  ;  and  the 
Indians  of  this  part  make  a  great  deal  of  sugar  in  the 
spring.  A  great  many  fish  are  caught  by  the  Indians 
here.  They  employ  ditferent  ways  to  take  them,  namely,  by 
means  of  nets  in  the  fall ;  and  by  spearing  them,  and  angling 
in  the  Avinter,  in  iioles  made  in  the  ice. 

Fridaif,  2 Is/. — Windbound  here  till  noon  :  we  found  the 
time  very  long ;  the  half  day  appeared  to  be  as  long  as  two 
days.  The  men  were  grumbling  and  complaining,  and  they 
seemed  to  be  the  most  miserable  of  all  men.  They  were 
saying  one  to  another  about  the  guide  :  "  Why  not  go  at 
once?"  But  our  guide  was  a  trusty  man  ;  he  would  not 
let  them  go  until  he  thought  it  safe  for  them  to  go.  After 
dinner  the  guide  gave  the  word  to  go,  and  in  a  few  minutes 
we  were  again  afloat  on  the  lake,  rolling  up  and  down  on  its 
waves.  When  we  got  off  about  fifteen  miles  from  our  en- 
campment, the  sea  and  the  wind  began  to  rise  higher  and 
higher ;  and  as  the  rocks  of  the  mountains  on  land  were 
very  steep,  the  sea  dashed  its  waves  against  the  rocks,  and 
it  became  very  rough.  The  canoe  jumped  so  high,  and 
went  down  again  on  the  water,  that  I  was  afraid  something 
very  serious  would  happen  to  the  canoe.  We  were  in  this 
condition  for  half  an  hour.  The  danger  was  very  great ; 
and  I  am  not  one  of  those  cowards  that  are  afraid  when 
there  is  a  little  ruffling  in  the  water,  but  I  have  been  fre- 
quently called  the  brave  voyager.  As  we  were  passing 
along  the  rocks,  one  or  two  waves  dashed  into  our  canoe, 
so  that  one  of  the  men  was  constantly  bailing  out  the  water. 


Ih  \ 


IN 


i  1 ' 

if] 


20 


JOURNAL  OF  THE 


We  were  not  in  danger  of  upsetting,  but  we  were  afraid  that 
the  bark  at  the  bottom  of  the  canoe  would  break,  as  it 
sometimes  happens  to  the  canoe  in  a  heavy  gale  in  this  freslj, 
water  sea.  We  encamped  for  the  evening  near  the  moun- 
tains, and  point  called  by  the  Indians  Nanahboshoo.  We 
only  made  thirty-five  miles  this  day.  The  conversation  this 
evening  was  about  the  danger  of  to-day.  It  appears  that 
the  men  in  the  other  canoes  were  as  afraid  as  our  men. 
Our  new  hands,  called  Pork  Eaters,  said,  they  thought  they 
would  be  drowned.  It  must  be  remembered  that  we  had 
three  canoes  in  all. 

There  is  a  large  stone  here,  near  the  Nanahboshoo  Moun- 
tains, which  is  very  remarkable.  The  stone  looks  as  if 
some  man  had  set  on  the  rock  and  made  an  impression  on 
it,  as  one  would  on  the  snow  in  winter.  This  was  not 
carved  by  any  Indian,  but  it  is  very  natural.  The  impres- 
sion is  very  large,  and  is  about  six  times  as  large  as  an  im- 
pression made  in  the  snow  by  a  man.  The  Indians  say 
that  Nanahboshoo,  a  god,  sat  here  long  ago,  and  smoked, 
and  that  he  left  it  for  the  west.  Every  time  the  Indians 
pass  here,  they  leave  tobacco  at  the  stone,  that  Nanahbo- 
shoo might  smoke  in  his  kingdom  in  the  west.  The  In- 
dians tell  many  tr.iditions  respecting  Nanahboshoo,  and  of 
his  wonderful  deeds.  About  the  mountain  there  are  many 
precious  stones  to  be  found,  which  t)ie  Indians  collect  and 
sell  at  Sault  Ste.  Marie. 

Saturday,  22d. — At  one  o'clock  this  morning  our  guide 
gave  the  command  for  embarking,  and  in  a  short  timq  the 
men  were  again  on  the  water.  It  was  very  calm,  and  we 
came  on  v^ry  well.  At  eight  o'clock  we  arrived  at  Michi- 
picoton,  the  Company's  Fort.  John  Swanson,  Esquire,  the 
gentleman  in  charge,  is  a  very  good  man ;  he  gave  us  a 
very  kind  reception,  and  we  took  breakfast  with  him. 

AH  the  coast  that  we  made  before  breakfast,  for  twenty 
miles,  is  of  barren  rocks.  Some  of  the  mountains  are 
almost  perpendicular  at  the  water's  edge  ;  some  of  them 
are  more  than  two  hundred  feet  high.  They  are  so  high 
that  they  make  the  passenger's  neck  quite  tired  by  constantly 
looking  up  to  the  top  of  the  mountain  from  the  water's 
edge. 

Michipicoton  River  is  found  at  the  foot  of  a  deep  bay.  It 
is  a  beautiful  place  for  a  fort.     The  whole  bay,  or  the 


mc 
anq 


k     .1 


■VUM 


n 


):kv.  I'ktkr  jaooi!«. 


21 


ve  were  afraid  that 
ivould  break,  as  it 
)^  gale  in  this  fresli 
ig  near  the  moun- 
anahboshoo.     We 
3  conversation  this 
It  appears  that 
raid  as  our  men. 
'hey  thought  thev 
ered  that  we  Jiad 

nahboshoo  Moun- 
stone  iooks  as  if 
an  impression  on 
'•     This  was  not 
al-     The  impres- 
5  large  as  an  im- 
The  Indians  say 
go,  and  smoked, 
tune  the  Indians 
>  that  JVanahbo- 

west.     The  In- 
iboshoo,  and  of 

there  are  many 
!ians  collect  and 

>rning  our  guide 
•  short  tim^  the 
r  calm,  and  we 
rrived  at  Michi- 
3n,  Esquire,  the 

he  gave  us  a 
i^ith  him. 
ast,  for  twenty 

mountains  are 
some  of  them 
■y  are  so  high 
i  by  constantly 
m  the  water's 

deep  bay.    It 
"^  bay,  or  the 


mouth  of  the  ii\ er,  is  of  dry  sand.     The  surrounding  hills 
and  mountains  arc  barren  rocks. 

After  breakfast  we  again  started.  We  had  beautiful 
calm  weather.  1  know  the  men  must  have  made  more; 
than  sixty  miles  to-day.  All  the  coast  that  we  passed 
over  to-day  is  barren.  In  the  hills  and  valleys  are  found 
blue  hucca  berries,  which  are  excellent  for  food.  They  are 
found  in  great  abundance  ;  but  oftentimes  bears  are  to  be 
contended  with  before  the  berries  are  taken  away,  for  they 
claim  the  sole  right  of  the  berries,  and  thus  they  become 
rather  dangerous  customers  if  any  persons  infringe  on  their 
rights. 

Sunday,  23d. — This  morning,  at  half-past  three  o'clock, 
before  we  could  really  hnish  saying  our  prayers,  the  guide 
had  his  canoes  already  on  the  water,  and  so  we  had  to  start 
off.  In  the  evening,  we  encamped  at  a  place  about  one 
mile  from  Fort  Pic.  Our  coast  the  whole  day  was  of  the 
same  appearance  as  the  day  before  :  there  were  nothing 
but  barren  rocks  and  mountains. 

In  the  evening,  Ahtikoos,  a  young  Indian  belonging  to 
the  Wesleyans,  and  who  was  formerly  a  member^ of  Rev. 
Thomas  Hurlburt's  church,  of  this  place,  came  to  see  me. 
I  asked  him  if  he  was  still  a  Wesleyan,  or  if  he  had  joined 
the  Roman  Catholics  or  not.  His  answer  was,  that  he  was 
still  a  Wesleyan,  and  he  intended  never  to  be  any  but  that ; 
I  therefore  gave  him  a  good  exhortation  to  fear  God  and 
to  love  him  ;  and  if  he  did  so,  God  would  be  gracious  to 
him  in  his  last  days.  He  told  me  he  had  not  the  least 
doubt  that  the  Indians  of  this  place  would  embrace  Chris- 
tianity if  a  missionary  came  to  reside  among  them.  1  told 
him  the  day  may  come  when  a  missionary  shall  come  to  see 
you.  Ahtikoos  could  read  the  Indian  translations  he  had 
with  him,  and  the  books  the  Roman  Catholics  use.  The 
priest  offered  to  baptize  him,  but  he  frankly  refused,  say- 
ing, he  did  not  wish  to  be  baptized  again. 

Monday,  2^th. — At  half-past  three  o'clock  we  were  off 
again  from  Pic,  after  commending  Ahtikoos  to  the  care  of 
God,  and  bidding  him  farewell.  We  crossed  two  large  tra- 
verses ;  the  first  was  about  ten  miles  in  width,  and  the 
second  about  eight  miles.  We  then  breakfasted  at  a  late 
hour,  and  after  a  delay  of  one  hour  we  were  off  again.  We 
made   about  twenty  miles    since  Ave   started  till  we   had 


22 


JOURNAL  OF  THK 


M^     ^ 


,1''  'A 


m  i'l 


;!i 


v[\ri  ■: 


breakfast.  We  passed  a  great  many  islands.  At  one 
o'clock  we  dined  at  one  of  the  islands,  and  after  some 
delay,  we  went  away  again.  In  the  evening  we  encamp- 
ed on  an  island :  made  sixty  miles  to-day.  The  coast  and 
the  islands  we  passed  are  barren  rocks.  This  is  no  place 
for  farmers.  Many  excellent  iish  are  caught  along  the 
coast,  such  as  white  fish,  salmon  trout  and  sturgeon.  The 
Indians  catch  them  at  all  seasons  of  the  year  with  nets, 
hooks  and  spears. 

Tuesday/,  loth. — A  fine  calm  day  :  the  men  made  very 
good  progress.  As  we  passed  through  one  of  the  narrows 
this  evening,  we  saw  a  house  that  belonged  to  one  of  tho 
Mining  Company's  men,  who  had  now  left  it.  At  seven 
o'clock  in  the  evening  we  encamped  on  an  island  nearly 
opposite  the  Thunder  Mountain.  We  made  about  sixty 
miles  to-day. 

Wednesday,  2Qth. — At  half-past  three  o'clock  we  left  the 
island,  and  soon  went  round  the  Thunder  Mountain.  The 
icason  that  it  is  called  Thunder  Mountain,  or  Ahnemekee 
\Vacheo,  according  to  the  Indians,  is,  that  the  Indians 
originally  believed  that  Thunder  used  to  come  and  lay  her 
eggs  on  this  mountain  and  hatch  them  :  for  tlie  Indians  be- 
lieve that  thunder  is  a  large  bird,  possessing  great  pov/er. 
Many  of  the  Indians  lo  this  day  believe  this  still.  The 
reason  they  thought  so,  and  do  think  so  still,  is  founded  upon 
what  is  as  follows  : — When  tlie  canoes  are  passing  and  re- 
passing tlie  large  traverse  between  the  mountain  and  Fort 
William  there  is  generally  thunder  and  fog  upon  the 
mountain.  The  bay  there  is  al«o  called  Thunder  Bay. 
The  Thunder  Mountain  is  a  long  narrow  mountain,  more 
than  two  hundred  feet  in  height,  that  is  perpendicularly ; 
and  there  is  no  access  to  the  top  of  the  mountain,  unless 
that  he  who  Avishes  to  go  goes  a  long  way  on  the  north- 
eastern side  of  the  mountain,  and  then  he  can  reach  the  top 
by  a  vale  at  the  bottom  of  the  mountain.  There  are  many 
beautiful  islands  in  this  bay  that  have  large  towering  moun- 
tains. These  would  make  stronsr  fortifications  that  would 
have  command  over  the  bay  and  the  mouth  of  Fort  Wil- 
jam  River  ;  but  the  mountains  are  all  barren  rocks. 

We  breakfasted  at  one  of  the  islands  in  the  bay ;  and 
after  breakfast,  at  ten  o'clock,  we  arrived  at  Fort  William, 
at  the  mouth  of  Fort  William  Rivor.  where  we  were  heartily 


recei] 
mile? 
on  til 
the  t| 

and 

shori 
come 
usked 

men  I 

tinge 

I  find 

is  n' 

pleai 

F^ 

was 


■•r-ii^iwwa*^ 


VA:Y.    PETKR  JACOD3. 


23 


islands.  At  one 
3,  and  after  some 
jning  we  encamp- 
K^    The  coast  and 

This  is  no  place 

iaught  along  the 

d  sturgeon.     The 

year  with  nets. 

men  made  yery 
le  of  the  narrows 
«d  to  one  of  the 
tt  it.  At  seven 
an  island  nearly 
ide  about  sixty 

clock  we  left  the 
Mountain.     The 
or  Ahnemekee 
lat   the  Indians 
me  and  lay  her 
the  Indians  be- 
g  great  power, 
this  still.     The 
s  founded  upon 
»as.sing  and  re- 
ntain  and  Fort 
fog   upon    the 
Tjiunder   Bay. 
fountain,  more 
rpendicularly  ; 
'untain,  unless 
on  the  north- 
reach  the  top 
lere  are  many 
vvering  moun- 
is  that  would 
of  Fort  Wil- 
rocks. 

'le  bay ;  and 
•'ort  William, 
kvore  heartily 


received  by  Mr.  and  Mrs.  McKennie,  We  made  twenty 
miles  this  morning.  At  dinner  we  lay  to,  and  bore  hard 
on  the  beautiful  white  fish  on  the  table.  We  arose  from 
the  table,  remai'king  that  we  had  an  excellent  dinner.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  McKennie  were  indeed  very  kind  to  us  during  the 
short  time  we  were  with  them ;  and  we  were  perfectly  wel- 
come to  take  anything  in  the  way  of  provisions,  if  we  only 
asked  for  it. 

In  the  afternoon,  young  Mr.  Taylor  went  off  Avith  ten 
men  in  a  light  canoe  to  Red  River.  As  Mr,  Francis  Erma- 
tinjjer  waa  to  take  charge  of  this  fort,  he  remained  here.    I 

c?  CD 

find  Mr.  Ermatinger  a  very  fine  traveling  companion.  There 
is  no  home  sickness  where  he  is.  We  spent  here  a  very 
pleasant  evening  with  Mr.  McKennie. 

Fort  William  is  situated  on  beautiful  o^round.  This  fort 
was  formerly  one  of  the  great  forts  of  the  North  West 
Company.  I  was  told,  that  in  the  time  of  its  glory  it  was 
not  unconiraon  to  find  a  thousand  men  here  belonging  to 
the  Company  ;  but  its  greatness  is  now  fast  diminishing. 

Fish  arc  cauijht  here  in  (jreat  abundance  at  all  the  sea- 
sons  of  the  j^ear.  Fort  William  has  a  fine  view  of  the  bay 
and  the  mountains.  The  whole  country  is  surrounded  by 
barren  rocky  mountains  ;  and  not  only  this  part  is  rocky, 
but  all  the  coast  from  Sault  Ste.  Marie.  The  canoe  route 
from  the  Sault,  in  and  out  of  the  bays,  to  Fort  William,  is 
about  three  hundred  miles. 

Tkitrsdrn/,  21  th. — At  ten  o'clock  we  started  from  Fort 
William  ;  and  a  little  way  up  the  Fort  William  River  there 
is  a  Roman  Catholic  mission,  which  we  visited,  Avhere  some 
of  the  Iroquois  went,  made  signs  of  the  c^-oss,  and  said  a 
few  short  prayers.  The  priest  has  gathered  about  fifteen 
families  of  Indians  ;  he  speaks  a  little  English  and  tolerably 
good  Indian.  He  was  busy  in  raising  the  frame  of  a 
chapel,  and  will  likely,  in  process  of  time,  make  a  good 
mission  of  this  ;  though  now  newly  established,  it  is  getting 
on  wonderfully,  and  the  Indians  are  living  in  their  wig- 
wams. 

Having  staid  here  a  few  minutes,  v.-e  proceeded  on  our 
voyage  up  against  a  strong  current,  and  made  about  twenty- 
one  miles  this  afternoon.  The  banks  on  each  side  of  the 
river  are  high.  The  soil  appears  tolerably  good,  well 
wooded,  with  heavy  birch,  poplar,  elm,  and  pine.     I  think 


24 


JoriiNAl.    OK    THK 


I  m 


a  farmer  might  make  a  living  by  cultivating  these  wild 
lands.  This  evening  we  bought  ten  or  fifteen  small  stur- 
geon from  the  Indians  ;  and  in  the  hurry  and  bustle,  some 
we  paid  for  and  some  not,  as  the  Indians  were  not  satisfied 
with  what  we  gave  them,  which  was  in  Indian  corn,  from 
one  to  one  and  a  half  pints  per  sturgeon,  I  dare  say  from 
one  to  two  pence.  At  supper  time  the  men  had  a  regular 
"  blow  out "  on  the  sturgeons.  We  met  with  an  Indian 
chief,  who  gave  us  very  bad  news  of  some  of  the  Lac  Lap- 
lulie  Indians  starving  to  death  this  spring.  This  chief.  Ah 
De  Gonse,  is  one  of  the  first  Indian  orators  in  these  parts, 
and  can,  without  any  apparent  difficulty,  speak  for  hours 
together.  This  same  chief  delivered  a  speech  to  his  Excel- 
lercy  Sir  George  Simpson,  in  the  spring  of  1841,  when 
some  of  the  officers  and  gentlemen  accompanying  Sir 
George  admired  the  masterly  manner  of  his  address. 

Friday,  2%th. — After  an  early  breakfast,  the  men  began 
to  pole  up  against  a  strong  current  or  rapid,  somewhere 
about  fifteen  miles  in  length.  The  banks  of  the  river  are 
high,  dry  and  sandy,  the  principal  timber  being  birch,  pop- 
lar, and  small  stunted  pine.  The  north  bank  is  inclining  to 
be  like  a  prairie,  where,  in  the  month  of  July,  an  abundance 
of  blue  berries  (whortleberries)  are  to  be  found.  I  and 
eight'  men  got  out  of  the  canoes  and  walked  on  the  north 
bank  of  the  river  for  the  distance  of  some  miles,  and  then 
got  into  the  canoes  again.  After  an  hour's  paddling,  we 
came  to  a  place  where  the  men  were  obhged  to  make  a 
half  portage,  by  taking  out  part  of  the  baggage,  the  cur- 
rent being  too  strong,  so  that  when  the  canoe  is  thus  dis- 
charged the  men  pulled  them  by  a  cord  line  about  thirty 
fathoms  long.  After  another  hour's  pull  we  came  to  a  dead 
water,  that  is  where  the  current  was  strong,  and  apparent- 
ly no  current  at  all.  This  was  about  two  miles  in  length  ; 
and  at  the  upper  end  of  this  we  dined  on  a  fine  open  space 
or  plain  cleared  by  former  fires.  After  this,  I  and  eight 
men  crossed  over  to  the  south  side  of  the  river,  and  fol- 
lowed an  Indian  trail  or  path  for  about  three  miles,  which 
brought  us  to  the  foot  of  the  mountain  Portage ;  and  after 
waiting  about  fifteen  minutes,  the  canoes  arrived.  We  are 
now  about  thirty-six  miles  from  Fort  William.  The  stone 
composing  this  mountain  is  of  the  slate  appearance.  The 
portage  itself  is  about  a  mile  in  length.     At  this  place  is 


4 


'f^ 


'•■-^i.'j^rT-'^'aito"''  '•^■^ 


fw 


UKV.    PETKI{    JACOnS. 


25 


ating  these  wild 
fteen  small  stur- 
find  bustle,  some 
vere  not  satisfied 
nclian  corn,  from 
I  dare  say  from 
en  had  a  regular 
with  an  Indian 
of  the  Lac  Lap- 
This  chief,  Ah 
'n  these  parts, 
'peak  for  jiours 
ch  to  his  Excel- 
of  1841,  when 
ompanying    Sir 
address, 
the  men  began 
3id,  somewhere 
>f  the  river  are 
■ing  birch,  pop- 
K  is  inclining  to 
,  an  abundance 
found.     I  and 
'd  on  the  north 
niles,  and  then 
s  paddling,  we 
■ed  to  make  a 
g^ge,  the  cur- 
oe  is  thus  dis- 
e  about  thirty 
ame  to  a  dead 
and  apparent- 
les  in  length ; 
ne  open  space 
»  I  and  eight 
iver,  and  fol- 
miles,  which 
?e;  and  after 
ed.     We  are 
^he  stone 
irance.     The 
this  place  is 


one  of  the  grandest  falls  of  water  to  be  seen  at  any  of  all  the 
many  noble  rivers  of  America,  and  is  second  in  grandeur 
to  the  greatest  of  cataracts,  that  of  Niagara.  It  is  worth 
the  while  of  any  one  passing  by  this  portage  to  go  and 
take  a  view  of  these  grand  falls  of  water.  The  next  port- 
age being  close  at  hand,  and  a  little  better  than  half  a  mile 
in  length,  at  the  upper  end  of  it  we  encamped  for  the 
night.  Fort  William  River  is  scarcely  at  some  places  over 
a  quarter  of  a  mile  in  breadth. 

Saturday/,  29th. — After  an  early  breakfast,  we  started  off 
again,  and  during  the  forenoon  we  made  three  half  port- 
ages; that  is,  the  men  taking  out  part  of  the  luggage,  and 
then  pulling  up  the  canoes  by  lines,  or  poling  up  the  rapids 
with  the  half-loaded  canoes.  The  first  regular  portage  we 
made  to-day  was  on  an  island  ;  and  about  five  hnndred 
yards  above  this  is  another  portage ;  both  are  very  short ; 
and  while  the  men  were  carrying  the  canoe  over  the  port- 
age, one  of  the  men  fell  down ;  did  not  break  the  canoe,  but 
it  falling  upon  him,  hurt  him  very  much.  It  is  not  an  un- 
common accident  for  men  carrying  canoes  to  meet  with 
such  an  accident  as  this.  Sometimes  it  has  happened  that 
men  have  died  by  the  hurt  they  received  by  falling  down 
with  the  canoe.  After  dinner,  we  made  two  or  three  half 
portages,  where  the  men  hauled  up  the  canoes  with  lines ; 
and  in  the  evening  made  one  regular  portage,  on  an  island 
only  about  fifteen  rods  long ;  and  about  half  a  mile  from 
this,  made  another,  a  quarter  of  a  mile  long,  and  here  we 
encamped  for  the  night. 

Sundayy  30th. — Early  this  moring  we  were  off  again. 
Poor  Christians  we  are  !  In  an  hour's  time,  arrived  at  the 
Dog  Portage.  Here  we  met  with  Mrs.  Ermatinger,  with 
five  men,  one  boy  and  a  woman.  She  is  on  her  way  down 
to  Fort  William  to  meet  her  husband,  who  is  now  in  charge 
of  that  establishment.  They  left  the  portage  as  we  enter- 
ed it,  and  we  made  this  splendid  portage  in  two  hours* 
time.  Some  say  it  is  three  miles  long,  and  from  the  top  of 
which  you  have  a  most  splendid  view  of  the  surrounding 
country ;  and  I  think  the  height  of  this  portage  is  more 
than  two  hundred  feet  above  water  level.  At  the  other 
end  there  is  a  fine  lake,  called  after  the  portage,  and  here 
we  had  breakfast.  The  lands  we  passed  from  Mountain 
Portage  to  this  are  worth  little  or  nothing  for  agricultural 


-ti 


# 


^ 


26 


JOCUNAL    OF    THE 


fH     ; 


m 


m  4 

ii 


m 


:   lit 

T 
( 


A 

■  ijiik 


purposes ;  in  fact  they  consist  of  liigh  and  barren  rock?, 
covered  with  a  few  stinted  pine,  birch,  and  juniper ;  and 
if  it  is  not  rocky  it  is  swampy.  We  are  now  about  thirty- 
six  miles  from  the  Mountain  Poitar(o. 

The  Dog  Lake  is  a  fine  large  lake.  The  part  of  il 
crossed  by  the  canoes  is  about  twelve  miles,  but  the  greater 
part  of  it  extends  to  the  northward  at  a  great  length  ;  and 
an  abundance  of  fish  is  found  in  it.  Of  course  its  shores- 
are  rocks,  and  barren  rocks ! 

We  enter  a  narrow  and  serpentine  river  bearing  the 
same  name  as  the  lake  and  portage,  well  timbered  on  both 
sides  with  laige  and  tall  cypress.  The  soil  is  of  a  light 
quick-sand,  and,  I  think,  in  some  places  it  would  bear  culti- 
vation— might  raise  potatoes.  The  general  appearance  of 
the  country  through  which  the  river  runs,  which  is  up- 
ward of  forty  miles,  is  a  dismal,  waste,  howling  desert  ; — 
no  hard  wood  of  any  description  whate-er.  In  the  evening 
we  encamped  at  the  first  little  rapid  in  t.ns  river. 

Monday,  Sis/". — Early  this  morning  we  made  the  little 
portage,  on  which  we  encamped,  and  after  a  few  more  small 
portages  we  breakfasted.  While  the  men  were  busy  with 
their  breakfast,  I  found  a  large  new  axe,  which  I  made  a 
present  of  to  the  voyagers.  At  these  small  rapids  the  In- 
dians make  weirs,  and  catch  great  quantities  of  fish,  which 
they  lay  up  for  their  winter  provisions — very  desirable  at. 
times  ;  and  after  passing  through  a  very  narrow  river,  a 
little  Avider  than  the  canoe,  and  having  made  two  more  lit- 
tle portages,  came  to  the  head  waters  of  Lake  Superior. 
At  this  place  is  a  spring  of  cold  water.  We  now  come  to 
a  height  of  land,  to  a  portage  called  the  Prairie,  which 
forms  the  dividing  ridge  between  Canada  and  the  Hudson's 
Bay  Territories.  This  height  of  land  is  not,  I  dare  say, 
much  above  sixty  feet  above  water  level,  and  is  one  of  the 
best  portages  that  we  have  as  yet  come  to;  is  fine,  dry, 
and  mostly  plain,  and  about  three  miles  long.  At  the 
commencement  of  this  portage  there  is  a  small  pond  of  fine 
cold  water,  and  here  we  dined.  After  dinner,  made  this 
portage,  and  came  to  a  small  marshy  pond  ;  crossing  this, 
we  came  to  another  portage  of  about  a  mile  in  length,  to 
another  lake  again,  three  mile?  long,  then  entered  into  a 
small  creek,  and  came  to  the  swampy  or  savan  portage. 
This  is  one  of  the  worst  portages  on  the  whole  water;  it 


viousl 
till  a^ 
is  abj 
whici 
on  01 
LakeJ 
abou| 
Bide 
portrl 


is 


Ul.V.    rKTKH    JACOBS. 


21 


and  barren  rock? 
,  ';^"^  juniper ;  and 
e  now  about  thirty. 

,     The   part  of  i/ 

'^es,  but  the  greater 

great  length  ;  and 

'*  course  its  shores 

r;ver    bearing  tlie 

'  t'nibered  on  both 

.  '^'^  l^  of  a  Jight 

t  Y^uW  bear  culti. 

»•'"  appearance  of 

'»«.  which  is  up. 

owhng  desert  ;--l 

■•    .Jn  theevenino- 
s  river.  ** 

e  made  the  Jittle 
^  iew  more  sma]] 
'  ^Gve  busy  with 
^;;^'ch  I  made  a 
iJ^  rapids  the  In- 
««  of  fish,  which 
«0'  desirable  at 
narrow  river,  a 
ie  two  more  Jit- 
J^ake  Supeiior. 
^e  now  come  to 
Prairie,  which 
a  the  Hudson's 
Jt,  I  dare  say, 
i  IS  one  of  tlie 
'■  is  fine,  dry, 
°"^-     At  the 
"  pond  of  fine 
'er,  made  this 
grossing  this, 
;»  length,  to 
•tered  into  a 
^^an  portage, 
ole  water;  it 


is  a  complete  miry  place — ^o  down  to  the  knees  in  mud ; 
and  I  was  obliged  to  pull  oft'  my  shoes  and  walk  over  this 
abominable  portage  barefooted.  It  is  about  two  miles  and 
a  half  long,  at  the  other  end  of  which  we  encamped,  ''"he 
portage  ought  to  be  paved,  as  IL  was  in  the  time  Oi  .ho 
West  Company ;  and  it  would,  perhaps,  cost  somewhere 
about  £30,  The  men  finished  making  this  portage  at  a 
late  hour,  and  all  very  tired,  so  much  so  that  some  of  them 
laid  down  and  slept  without  taking  their  suppers,  and  grum- 
bled a  good  deal. 

June  1st. — The  men  having  been  wearied  by  the  pre- 
vious evening's  struggle  through  the  mud,  we  did  not  start 
till  after  breakfast,  and  descended  the  Savan  River,  which 
is  about  thirty  miles  long,  and  now  we  are  in  the  waters 
which  flow  down  to  the  Hudson's  Bay.  To-day  we  dined 
on  one  of  the  points  of  the  lake  called  Thousand  Island 
Lake  ;  and  the  length  of  the  lake  passed  by  the  canoes  is 
about  twenty-five  miles,  though  the  greater  part  lies  on  one 
bide  of  the  country.  On  leaving  the  lake  we  entered  a 
portage  which  is  a  little  over  a  mile  in  length,  and  this 
ouffht  to  be  called  the  Thousand  Island  Lake  Portage. 
The  distance  from  the  prairie,  or  the  height  of  land,  to  this 
is  about  sixty-three  miles.  I  would  here  say,  that  this  is 
my  sixth  trip  through  this  wild  route,  so  that  I  can  very 
well  calculate  the  distances  of  these  lakes,  rivers,  and  port- 
ages. 

Wednesday/,  2d. — At  three  o'clock  this  morning  we 
again  started  for  our  encampment,  and  passed  through  two 
small  lakes,  the  length  of  both  about  twelve  miles  ;  came 
to  a  portage  of  about  three  quarters  of  a  mile  long,  which 
is  fine  and  dry.  We  then  came  into  a  creek  little  wider 
than  the  breadth  of  the  canoe ;  thence  entered  and  passed 
through  a  narrow  lake  of  about  three  miles  long,  when  we 
again  entered  a  creek  of  about  a  mile  in  length ;  we  then 
came  to  another  narrow  lake  eight  miles  long  ;  at  the  end 
of  this  lake  we  breakfasted.  This  lake  is  called  by  the  In- 
dians Win  de  goo  oes  de  gouun,  (the  Cannibal's  Head.)  Af- 
ter breakfast,  we  passed  through  a  chain  of  small  lakes, 
varying  from  two  to  four  miles  in  length ;  and  we  ran  one 
short  rapid  in  passing  these  lakes.  We  then  came  to  the 
French  portage,  which  is  three  miles  long ;  but  the  water 
being  high  in  the  creek,  we  avoided  the  portage  by  going 


•^ 


28 


jouuNAL  or  Till: 


il 


I 


■I' 


in  m 


I'll  ! 

tr  ''' 


II 
Ii 


down  in  this  small,  but  long,  and  tediously-long  creek, 
called  the  French  River,  and  made  only  one  small  portage, 
&c.,  in  the  creek,  and  is  about  seven  miles  long.  At  the 
outlet  of  this  creek  we  dined.  After  dinner  we  passed 
through  two  small  lakes,  and  then  we  came  to  the  0  gahse 
gall  ning,  (the  Pickerel  Fishery,)  so  called,  the  pickerel  be- 
ing very  numerous  here  in  the  spring.  The  length  of  this 
lake  is  sixteen  miles ;  and  after  passing  about  two-thirds 
of  its  length,  we  encamped  on  an  island.  The  appearance 
of  the  country  we  passed  to-day  is  nothing  worse  nor  bet- 
ter than  the  other  parts  already  described,  consisting  of  bar- 
ren rocky  hills,  the  hollows  or  valleys  of  dry  sand,  but 
bearing  beautiful  large  white  and  Norway  pines,  which 
could  answer  finely  for  building,  such  pine  as  1  ha\"e  seen 
in  Canada  made  into  boards  and  frames  of  houses. 

Thursday/,  Sd. — During  the  past  night  it  was  rather 
cold  ;  and  during  this  voyage  we  sutfercd  a  good  deal  from 
the  cold  weather,  whicli  generally  happens  when  there  is 
no  appearance  of  rain.  However,  we  started  at  three 
o'clock,  and  in  an  hour  and  a  half  came  to  a  portage  which 
is  a  mile  long,  and  ends  in  another  lake  about  four  miles 
in  length  ;  and  at  the  other  end  of  this  lake  we  made 
another  portage  a  mile  in  length,  when  we  breakfasted.  I 
here  shot  four  partiidges,  and  made  our  breakfast  of  them. 
After  breakfast,  we  crossed  n  lake  about  a  mile  long,  and 
then  went  into  a  river  of  twc  iiiiles  in  length,  which  brought 
us  into  a  long  narrow  lake  of  abuut  fourteen  miles  long,  at 
the  end  of  which  the  men  ran  down  very  heavy  rapids  after 
lightening  the  canoes ;  and  within  a  few  hundred  yards  from 
this,  another  portage,  where  the  men  took  out  part  of  the 
luggage,  and  then  ran  down  the  rapids.  It  is  wonderful 
how  well  these  men  manage  to  run  down  heavy  rapids 
with  their  frail  bark  canoes. 

After  this,  our  way  lay  in  a  large  river  with  a  strong 
current,  and  many  small  rapids,  which  were  in  our  favor. 

We  dined  at  the  outlet  of  this  river.  After  this  we 
passed  a  lake  of  seven  miles  long,  and  came  to  a  portage, 
where  the  men  ran  their  canoes  down  these  rapids.  These 
are  the  rapids  wliere  John  Turner  was  sliot  by  an  Indian, 
who  was  hired  by  his  wife  to  kill  liim.  Turner,  in  the  act 
of  hauling  his  canoe  up  these  raj)ids,  was  shot  from  a  bush 
hard  bv,  and  foil  into  the   water,  and  was    then  left  for 


m  I ; 


m 


«'«tV»>l«««»<w" 


I 


RISV.    PETER  JACOBS. 


i9 


'UsJy-Jong  creek, 
le  small  portage, 
:^  ^oni?.     At  the 
'nner  we  passed 
Ie  to  the  0  gahse 
-  the  pickerel  be- 
N  length  of  this 
■^bout  two-thirds 
i'he  appearance 
'^  worse  nor  bet- 
ionsisting  of  bar- 
'^  di-y  sand,  hut 
'ay  pines,   which 
'G  as  I  ]ja>-e  seen 
houses. 

^  it  was  rather 
p  good  deal  from 
8  when  there  is 
Started   at  three 
a  portage  which 
bout  four  miles 
N  lake  we  made 
breakfasted.     I 
•eakfast  of  them, 
a  mile  long,  and 
.  which  brought 
'n  miles  long.^at 
-avy  rapids  after 
d'*ed  yards  from 
out  part  of  the 
^t  IS  wonderful 
1  heavy  rapids 

with  a  strong 
1"  our  favor. 
After  this  we 
'  to  a  portage, 
apids.     These 
h'  an  Indian, 
ic'';»  in  the  act 
'  f'om  a  bush 
^'len  left  for 


dead  ;  but  T.'s  days  were  not  yet  numbered  ;  he  to, 

and  fortunately  the  next  day  a  Montreal  canoe  passii  ^nd 
picked  him  up.  The  same  .Fohn  Turner  was  thirty  years 
among  the  Indians  :  he  had  been  taken  by  them,  when  quite 
a  child,  a  captive.  The  people  of  the  civilized  world  are 
acquainted  with  the  narrative,  published  some  ten  or  fifteen 
years  ago  at  New-York,  where  he  narrates  the  various  inci- 
dents of  his  thirty  years'  captivity.  The  work  is  very  in- 
teresting. 

The  river  on  which  we  are  now  going  down  is  about  ten 
miles  long,  with  strong  current,  much  to  our  advantage. 
After  having  gone  about  two-thirds  of  this  river,  we  made 
a  portage  on  an  isUmd  called  the  Island  Portage,  about  a 
quarter  of  a  mile  long.  From  the  Thousand  Island  Lake 
Portage  to  this,  is,  I  think,  rightly  calculating  the  distance 
from  one  place  to  another,  about  one  hundred  and  thirty- 
one  miles,  which  will  be  observed  is  rather  under  the 
proper,  or  what  may  be  called  the  real  distance.  Late  this 
afternoon  came  to  a  lake  culled  by  the  Indians,  She  gonne 
go  que  ming  (Pine  Lake ;)  and  then  went  on  this  lake  for 
about  eight  miles,  and  then  encamped  for  the  night. 

Friday/,  \th  June. — We  again  suft'ered  from  the  cold 
during  the  past  night,  though  it  is  now  the  4th  of  June. 
At  three  o'clock  we  came  off  again  from  the  encampment. 
After  paddling  about  six  miles  through  this  lake,  we  en- 
tered the  Macan  River.  The  banks  of  the  lake  we  have 
just  passed  are  covered  with  large  and  tall  white  and  Nor- 
way pines.  The  same  kind  of  timber  has  been  seen  plenti- 
ful during  the  two  previous  days'  voyage.  This  country 
produces  furs  and  skins  for  the  traders  of  the  richest 
sort. 

After  entering  the  river,  about  two  miles  distance,  we 
came  to  a  portage  a  quarter  of  a  mile  in  length.  We  then 
descended  a  wide  river,  and  stronij  current  favorinsr  us. 
Having  gone  three  miles  further,  we  came  to  another  port- 
age, a  quarter  of  a  mile  in  length  ;  and  after  we  had  gone 
on  six  miles  more,  we  breakfasted.  After  breakfast,  and 
having  gone  about  four  miles,  we  came  to  a  portage  a  quar- 
ter of  a  mile  in  length.  We  then  descended  this  river, 
whose  strong  current  carried  us  on  with  a  good  speed  for 
about  six  miles,  and  then  arrived  at  rapids  about  a  mile 
long.     The  men  ran  these  rapids  ;  and  Ihrec  miles  further 


ao 


.tOI'RNAI.   OF  THB 


down  this  river  wu  came  to  another  portage  or  rapids 
about  ft  mile  lonj^.  Those  are  tlie  rapids  which  are  called 
by  the  Indians  Nuhmaguun,  where  the  Indians  catch  stur- 
geon and  white  fiuh  in  gr'3at  abundance  during  the  summer 
season.  To-day  saw  the  first  Indian  that  I  have  seen 
while  traveling  through  this  vast  wilderness.  He  was  a 
good  distance  off,  so  we  did  not  speak  with  him ;  and  seven 
miles  down  this  river  we  entered  Nahmaguun  Lake.  As 
regards  the  soil  along  this  river,  there  is  nothing  but  rocks, 
and  very  little  timber  of  any  kind  that  is  valuable.  The 
islands  on  the  Nahmaguun  possess  good  soil  for  cultiva- 
tion ;  and  some  of  the  Indian  families  have  raised  a  good 
quantity  of  potatoes,  which  they  barter  to  the  traders  for 
goods.  After  passing  fourteen  miles  on  this  lake,  we  arrived 
at  the  two  portages.  These  two  portages  are  each  half  a 
mile  long,  and  a  half  a  mile  apart.  The  water  being  high, 
the  men  had  no  trouble  in  making  these  portages.  They 
had  only  to  hand  over  the  canoes  a  few  paces  of  ground  on 
one  of  them ;  but  the  other  was  all  under  water,  and 
passed  over  the  ground  where  formerly  the  road  was.  I 
have  never  seen  the  water  so  high  before  ;  and  here  we 
dined,  and  the  men  gummed  their  canoes,  being  now  to 
voyage  on  open  water  all  the  way  to  the  company's  estab- 
lishment, at  Lac  la  Pluie.  I  dare  say,  on  rough  guessing, 
it  is  about  seventy  miles  from  this  to  that  establishment. 

After  passing  down  the  river,  we  soon  came  to  the  Ket- 
tle Rapids,  so  called,  I  suppose,  from  the  whirlpools  in 
these  rapids.  Here  the  Indians  catch  white  fish  in  gre  it 
abundance,  by  scooping  them  up  from  the  eddies  and  whirl- 
pools in  these  rapids.  This  they  do  during  the  whole 
summer  season.  This  evening,  at  a  very  late  hour,  we 
reached  the  narrows  of  the  Lac  la  Pluie,  called  by  the  In- 
dians Wahbahsgahndugaung,  and  here  we  encamped  for 
the  night. 

Saturday,  5th  June. — Early  at  three  o'clock  we  again 
left  our  encampment,  and,  after  paddling  till  eight  o'clock, 
we  breakfasted  at  a  place  called  the  Grind-stone  Narrows. 
After  breakfast  we  proceeded  on  our  way ;  about  one 
o'clock  we  entered  the  Lac  la  Pluie  River. 

The  Lac  la  Pluie  is  a  large  lake,  and  runs  from  north- 
west to  a  south-east  direction,  containing  many  islands 
well  wooded  witn  white  and  Nfuway  pines,  and  bounded 


Ri:V.    I'KTKi:    .lACOHH. 


tl 


i 


with  rocky  and  barren  shores — but  whit«»  pine  of  no  large 
size. 

At  one  o'clock  we  entered  the  Lac  la  Pluie  River,  and 
soon  arrived  at  the  comp:iny's  fort,  b«.'iiig,  as  I  think, 
one  of  the  finest  and  the  hirgcst  estiiblishnienls  the  Hud- 
son's Bay  Company  has  in  this  [)art  of  the  country.  It  is 
beautifully  ^iiuat(.'d  below  a  large  fall  of  water,  whose  con- 
tinuous din  1  >  ever  heard  by  the  jx'ople  living  here,  and 
below  the  fort.  There  is  a  Hne  view  a  long  way  down  the 
river ;  and  about  a  mile  from  the  company's  ])resent  estab- 
lishment is  to  be  seen  som<!  few  vestigrs  of  an  old  establish- 
ment occupied  in  former  liays  by  the  Norih  West,  Company. 
There  is  not  a  builditii;  remains  siaiuiii)''-.  The  traveler  is 
only  reminded  that  there  was  once  such  a  company  in  ex- 
istence, and  that  this  place  was  oec,u{)i<'d  by  lliem  ; — but 
their  glory,  and  tiie  glory  of  their  place,  is  totally  departed. 
The  river  whicli  (lows  before  the  door  of  the  present  estab- 
lishment forms  the  boundary  line  which  sejiarates  the  pos- 
sessions of  Jolin  Bull  from  those  of  his  Brother  Jonathan. 

Suvdnij,  (ith. — There  are  not  many  people  at  the  fort  at 
present. — Mr.  Pether,  a  young  clerk  in  charge,  and  two 
women.  Remaining  here  over  Sabbath,  I  am  sorry  to  say 
1  had  no  congregation  to  preach  to,  but  in  the  evening  I 
baptized  one  little  girl.  The  gentleman  of  the  district  had 
already  gone,  with  all  his  men,  in  boats  down  to  York 
Factory,  so  that  the  establishment  looked  rather  solitary. 
A  person  entering  the  stores  of  this  fort  can  see,  in 
lifteen  minutes'  time,  more  rich  furs,  such  as  sable,  silver 
and  black  foxes,  &c.,  than  he  woidd  in  twenty  years' 
time  in  Canada.  Young  Mr.  Pether  was  very  kind  to  me 
while  1  remained  here. 

Monc/at/,  1th. — At  four  o'clock  we  commenced  our 
voyage  dcnvn  this  beautiful  river,  which  is  estimated  to  be 
seventy  miles  long.  In  the  forenoon  to-day  passed  three 
rivers  flowing  into  this  from  the  south ;  and  at  the  junc- 
tion of  these  rivers  are  spots  of  ground  which  I  think  would 
be  fine  situations  for  mission  stations,  the  soil  being  rich 
and  climate  favorable ;  and  therefore  could  raise  Avheat,  bar- 
ley, and  potatoes ;  wood  for  building  purposes  at  hand  ; 
and  there  is  also  scrubby  white  oak  to  be  found  at  these 
places. 

We  met  with  a  good  many  canoes  of  Cree  men,  who  rc- 

3 


33 


JOURNAL    OF   THE 


Bide  about  the  company's  fort,  and  Indians ;  and  not  a  few 
of  them  expressed  sorrow  that  I  had  not  come  to  remain, 
and  hoped  that  I  would  some  day  come  again.  About 
twelve  o'clock  we  arrived  at  the  Manito  Rapids,  where  we 
found  numerous  tents  of  Indians,  who  are  now  engaged  in 
the  sturgeon  fishery — about  three  hundred  souls  in  all. 
Tiiese  Indians  are  tall,  strong,  and  well  built.  As  a  com- 
munity, they  are  good  and  handsome-looking.  Some  of 
them,  who  are  good  hunters,  dress  very  well,  their  faces 
well  painted  with  red  and  other  colors ;  feathers  on  their 
heads,  silver  ringlets  about  their  arms,  and  earrings  and 
other  trinkets.  The  women  also  are  well  dressed,  some- 
thing corresponding  with  the  dress  of  their  lords,  except- 
ing the  feathers ;  but  they  wear  about  their  necks  brass 
wire,  which  they  consider  a  great  ornament.  Taking  them 
as  a  community,  they  look  well ;  and,  of  course,  as  in  all 
communities,  there  are  some  poor,  who  are  almost  in  a  state 
of  nudity.  About  the  Manito  Rapids  would  be  a  grand 
situation  for  a  mission  station,  where  Mr.  Mason  and  myself 
once  thought  of  (?stablishing ;  and  the  Indians  and  others 
opposing  the  project,  which  they  said  would  ruin  the  stur- 
geon fishery  here.  And  taking  other  things  into  consider- 
ation, though  the  place  itself  is  as  good  as  can  be  found  any- 
where ;  but  being  far  away  from  any  sea  port,  or  the  civil- 
ized world,  whence  things  necessary  could  be  had — and  the 
expense  that  would  be  incurred  in  getting  these  things 
would  be  great — was  the  cause  of  abandoning  the  project. 

Since  I  was  among  this  people,  it  appears  a  good  many 
have  died ;  a  few  by  natural  death,  but  most  by  starvation 
in  the  winter.  For  instance,  a  family  seven  in  number 
were  found  dead  just  as  they  were  sitting  around  their  fire, 
near  Chastellain's  Post,  at  the  Lac  du  dois  Blanc. 

After  distributing  some  tobacco  among  these  Indians, 
and  the  men  having  taken  as  much  sturgeon,  fresh  and 
dried,  as  they  wanted,  we  pushed  off  from  them,  and  dined 
near  the  Long  Sault.  After  dinner  we  put  ashore  again  at 
the  Long  Sault,  where  there  were  some  more  Indians,  but 
not  so  many  as  at  the  other  place.  Here  also  I  gave  some 
tobacco.  On  going  off,  it  was  as  much  as  I  could  do  to  pre- 
vent Es  ';ua  gesig,  one  of  the  principal  Indians  belonging  to 
the  river,  from  jumping  into  the  canoe,  that  ho  miglit  have 
some  conversation  with  me,  and  to  make  me  piomise  to 


i  r 


i^ 


REV.   FKTER  JACOBS. 


33 


^    i' 


1^ 


come  back  again  and  be  a  missionary  among  them.  I  was 
forcibly  reminded  of  that  passage  of  Scripture — "  0  hadst 
thou  known,  even  thou,  things  which  belong  to  thy  peace ; 
but  now  they  are  hid  from  thine  eyes ! "  I  did  not  re- 
ceive him  into  the  canoe. 

I  may  here  remark,  that  the  Long  Sault  is  one  of  those 
places  on  which  I  had  my  eyes  when  I  was  here  before  to 
have  a  mission  station ;  and  this  place  is  far  better  than 
even  the  Manito.  This  is  upward  of  a  mile  in  extent — 
good  land  ;  and  further  down  the  river,  for  at  least  two 
miles,  are  ready  cleared  lands,  rich  soil,  hay,  and  grass  for 
cattle.  At  night  we  encamped  at  the  Rapid  River,  so 
called  from  its  having  a  fall  of  considerable  height  as  it 
enters  the  main  river. 

Tuesday,  8th. — Head  wind  all  day,  and  therefore  did 
not  budge  an  inch  from  our  encampment. 

Wednesday,  9th. — At  peep  of  day  we  were  off,  and 
breakfasted  at  the  mouth  of  the  river.  As  I  have  sriid  be- 
fore, the  banks  of  this  river  are  good,  and  capable  of  being 
cultivated  ;  but  it  has  this  drawback,  that  a  ridge  of  good 
land,  of  the  breadth  of  a  quarter  of  a  mile,  extends  along 
the  length  of  the  river,  and  further  back  are  swamps.  The 
wind  still  blowing,  and  direct  ahead,  we  only  came  to  the 
stnrting-place  of  the  Grand  Traverse  of  the  Lake  of  the 
Woods,  and  dined  there.  It  is  a  kind  of  a  strait,  and 
about  six  miles  across ;  and  in  Avindy  weather  it  has  gener- 
ally a  very  rough  sea,  from  the  circumstance  of  its  being 
shoal.  It  has  been  known  in  former  days,  hi  the  time  of 
the  North  West  Company,  when  bark  canoes  were  the 
only  crafts  in  use,  that  people  have  thrown  overboard  their 
cargoes  to  save  themselves  from  perishing  in  the  water. 
At  night  we  reached  the  Painted  Stone,  so  called,  the  In- 
dians having  painted  a  stone  here.  The  Lake  of  the 
Woods  contains  many  islands  that  might  be  cultivated,  but 
its  main  shores  are  rocks  and  swamps.  The  Indians,  on  a 
small  scale,  raise  Indian  corn,  pumpkins,  and  potatoes.  At 
the  eastern  extremity  of  the  lake,  wild  rice  is  to  be  found 
in  great  abundance. 

Thursdaij,  10th. — Fine  calm  day.  At  half-past  three 
o'clock  we  reached  the  Rat  Portage.  The  length  of  the 
Lake  of  the  Woods,  from  the  mouth  of  Lake  la  Pluie  to 
Rat  Portage,  which  is  considered  the  extremity  of  the  lake, 


34 


JOURNAL   OF    THK 


is  moi'e  than  seventy  miles.  The  Rat  Portage  itself  is 
about  half  a  mile  long,  and  from  the  other  end  of  it  we 
could  see  one  of  the  out-posts  of  the  company,  and  on 
arriving  there,  found  Mr.  James  McKenzie  in  charge  of 
the  place,  who  gave  us  some  potatoes,  for  which  we  thanked 
him ;  proceeded  on  our  voyage,  and  encamped  at  Birch 
Point. 

Friday,  1 1  th. — Early  this  morning  we  started  off,  with  a 
strong  current  in  our  favor,  and  soon  came  to,  and  ran 
down  the  Dalles.  Here  the  men  bought  some  sturgeon 
from  the  Indians.  I  also  bought  a  young  porcupine  for 
my  own  breakfast ;  I  gave  a  little  tobacco  for  it.  The  flesh 
of  this  animal  is  excellent,  and  I  shared  it  among  a  few  of 
my  choice  friends — the  Iroquois.  After  breakfast,  the  wind 
being  strong  and  fair,  and  the  current  being  strong,  all  in 
our  favor,  we  hoisted  sail,  and  soon  passed  through  a  chain 
of  lakes,  and  at  half-past  ten  o'clock  arrived  at  the  grand 
discharge,  the  commencement  of  a  succession  of  short  port- 
ages, the  three  principal  of  which  are  a  quarter  of  a 
mile  in  length,  and  two  or  three  more  smaller  ones :  and 
all  these  lay  within  four  miles  of  each  other.  At  one  o'clock 
P.  M.  we  ari'ived  at  the  White  Dosr,  where  I  met  with  Mr, 
Kennedy,  who  is  in  charge  of  a  newly  established  mission 
station  of  the  Church  of  England  ;  and  here  we  took  our 
dinner.  I  here  had  a  long  conversation  with  the  Indians  on 
religious  subjects.  I  was  especially  desirous  to  impress 
their  minds  on  the  happy  results  of  becoming  Christians 
in  earnest,  bringing  as  a  proof  of  my  remarks  the  happy 
condition  of  the  Indians  in  Canada,  who  are  Christians,  and 
are  rapidly  advancing  in  civilization.  I  told  them  that  I  had 
been  over  the  great  waters  to  England,  and  had  seen  the 
Great  Female  Chief  eight  times  during  my  last  visit.  They 
inquired  how  she  looked  ;  I  told  them  that  she  was  very 
handsome  ;  that  she  lived  in  houses  or  castles  like  moun- 
tains ;  was  surrounded  by  many  great  men,  soldiers  and 
great  guns,  so  that  no  one  who  intends  evil  to  the  great 
female  Chief  can  come  near  her.  I  told  them  also 
that  England  was  a  wonderful  and  a  very  rich  country ; 
everything  wonderful  was  there  to  be  found — steamboats 
and  carriages  which  go  by  steam,  running  very  fast  on  iron 
roads ;  and  the  whole  land  is  filled  with  people,  like  the 
multitudes  of  rausquitoes  in  their  own  country. 


A, 


X 


REV.  PEIER  JACOBS. 


86 


J. 


On  leaving  them,  I  distributed  among  them  some  tobac- 
co and  fish-hooks,  as  1  hrve  done  amonir  the  other  Indians 
I  met  with  on  my  journey  in  these  territories.  I  had  a 
large  supply  of  fish-hooks,  given  me  by  a  young  lady  at 
Brooklyn  to  give  to  the  Indians ;  and  may  that  young  lady 
ever  live  before  the  Lord  ! 

The  soil  about  the  mission  establishment  is  most  excel- 
lent for  cultivation,  the  climate  being  the  same  as  the  Red 
River  settlement,  and  within  the  same  latitude,  and  capa- 
ble of  raising  wheat,  bailey,  oats,  and  Ind'un  corn,  pota- 
toes and  other  vegetables.  Tliis  spot  of  good  land  con- 
tains about  four  hundred  or  more  aci'es,  but  the  surround- 
ing country,  as  well  as  that  we  j)assed,  is  nothing  but  bar- 
ren rocks  and  swamps.  Tlie  distance  from  Rat  Portage  to 
this  place  (White  Dog)  is  about  fifty  miles. 

The  wind  still  fair ;  so  we  hoisted  sail,  and  having  passed 
many  a  long  turn  in  the  river  and  lake,  we  came  to  the 
Island  Portage,  and,  without  ever  stopping,  we  went  down 
these  fearful  rapids,  and  in  spite  of  what  the  men  could 
do,  the  canoes  w^ere  canied  to  the  middle  of  the  rapids, 
and  were  whirled  round  for  some  minutes  in  the  whirlpools, 
and  every  one  thought  our  day  was  come ;  the  men  turned 
pale  as  death.  I  must  say,  I  was  not  a  little  frightened. 
After  we  got  away  and  over  the  panic,  there  were  two 
Irishmen  close  to  me,  they  gave  thanks  to  the  Lord  for 
our  deliverance  from  such  imminent  danger,  and  I  secretlv 
responded  amen  to  what  they  said.  After  the  men  bailed 
out  the  water  from  the  canoes  which  we  shipped  in  the 
rapids,  we  hoisted  sail  again  and  sailed  till  dusk,  and  passed 
the  Crook  Lake,  called  by  the  Indians  the  Grand  Turn. 
Having  had  fair  wind  and  a  strong  current  in  our  favor  dur- 
ing the  whole  of  the  day,  I  dare  say  we  have  made  some- 
where about  eighty  miles. 

Saturday,  \2th. — Started  at  our  usual  hour,  three  o'clock ; 
we  soon  arrived  at  the  Chats  du  Jaque,  three  or  four  hun- 
dred yards  long,  and  without  delaying  in  making  this  port- 
age, we  soon  came  to  the  two  portages  called  Portage  du 
Bois.  The  first  of  these  is  a  quarter  of  a  mile  long,  and 
the  other  shorter,  and  another  in  sight  which  is  only  a  few- 
hundred  yards  long,  at  the  lower  end  of  which  we  break- 
fasted. About  ten  o'clock  we  arrived  at  the  Slave  Falls. 
The  name  of  these  originated  from  two  Indian  slaves  escap- 


88 


JOURNAL  or  THK 


ing  from  their  cruel  masters,  went  down  these  falls,  and 
there  perished.  The  poi'tage  is  nearly  half  a  mile  long, 
after  which  we  passed  through  a  river  with  a  strong  cur- 
rent, and  passed  one  small  lake,  and  then  came  to  the  falls 
called  Barrier,  and  soon  passed  this,  jind  on  we  went  with 
a  good  speed,  and  passed  two  little  lakes,  and  dined  near 
the  Grand  Rapids ;  and  liaving  passed  two  or  tliree  more 
little  rapids,  we  came  to  the  district  po?'tages,  seven  in  num- 
ber, and  all  lay  within  seven  miles  of  each  other,  and  none 
exceeding  a  quarter  of  a  mile  in  length  ;  and  they  are  most 
dangerous  to  approach  either  by  a  canoe  or  boat.  Having 
passed  these  safely,  we  came  to  the  White  River,  and  here 
we  encamped  for  the  night.  We  had  made  about  sixty 
miles  to-day. 

Sunday,  \Zth. — We  descended  the  White  River,  whose 
current  is  strong  and  swift,  and  passing  down,  came  to  the 
Lake  de  Bonnet,  after  which  we  made  two  portages  close 
together,  and  arrived  at  the  Portage  de  Bonnet.  Here  also 
is  a  spot  of  about  isvo  hundred  acres  of  oak  land,  fine  grass 
growing  for  cattle,  but  the  surrounding  land  is  worthless, 
so  far  as  agricultural  purposes  are  concerned.  There  may 
be  a  few  fur-bearing  animals  found  in  it.  The  portage  it- 
self is  more  than  a  mile  long  ;  and  a  small  distance  below 
this  is  another  portage  one  quarter  of  a  mile  long ;  and 
passing  this,  we  descended  the  river  for  about  four  miles, 
and  arrived  at  the  portage  called  the  White  Clay  Portage. 
This  is  a  very  fine  portage,  a  few  oak  trees  about  it ;  and 
having  made  another  four  miles  down  the  river,  we  came  to 
the  Silver  Falls,  with  two  portages  of  over  a  quarter  of  a 
mile  in  length,  and  somewhere  about  eight  hundred  yards 
from  each  other.  At  the  lower  end  of  the  last  portage  we 
dined  ;  and  after  dinner  we  went  on,  and  after  leaving  many 
ripples  and  rapids,  we  arrived  at  the  last  portage  in  the 
Winipeg  River,  which  is  about  a  half  a  mile  long;  and 
going  down  in  a  strong  current,  and  before  coming  in  sight 
of  the  company'''>  fort  we  came  to  a  strong  rapids  called  by 
the  Indians  Manito  Rapids,  and  the  place  where  the}  gene- 
rally hold  their  Manito  feasts  ;  and  I  dare  say,  by  the  number 
of  tents  at  a  point  close  by,  there  were  about  one  hundred 
Indians  assembled ;  and  evidently,  by  their  dress,  paints 
about  their  persons,  and  feathers  about  their  heads,  they 
were  at  the  annual  ceremonies  of  their  heathen  worship. 


I 


^   9^ 


1 


nEV.   I'ETKK  JACOBS. 


hi 


We  were  in  sight  of  Fort  Alexander.  When  the  people  of 
the  fort  saw  us,  they  hoisted  up  a  flag,  as  they  have  done 
at  the  other  forts  we  passed,  in  honor  of  the  gentleman 
whom  they  suppose  to  be  a  passenger  in  the  canoes.  We 
landed  at  the  fort  at  four  o'clock:  at  the  rate  we  came, 
we  must  have  mftde  about  fifty  miles  to-day-.  I  was  very 
respectfully  received  by  Mr.  James  Isbester,  a  postmaster 
in  charge  of  this  eiitablishment.  Here  I  also  met  with 
Roderick  McKenzie,  Esquire,  a  chief  factor  in  the  service 
of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  with  his  intelligent  family. 
As  the  gentlemen  and  ladies  of  this  fort  understand  the 
Ojibway  tongue,  I  therefore  prayed  and  preached  in  that 
language ;  and  during  my  stay  here  I  had  prayers  with 
people. 

On  Monday  morning  early  the  canoes  in  which  I  came 
thus  far  went  oft'  for  Norway  House.  I  remained  here  for  a 
couple  of  days,  in  order  to  get  a  passage  to  the  Red  River 
settlement,  to  see  my  son,  who  is  at  the  collegiate  school  in 
that  settlement. 

In  former  days  Fort  Alexander  was  a  considerable  es- 
tablishment, especially  in  the  great  object  of  its  found'^rs, 
namely,  tlie  getting  of  furs  and  skins  ;  and  it  had  also  a 
larije  farm  attached  to  it,  or  vestiije  of  a  laraje  farm.  The 
people  here  may  raise  any  quantity  of  wheat,  barley,  or  any 
kind  of  o-rain,  and  vefjetables.  The  soil  on  both  sides  of  the 
river  being  very  good,  and  the  climate  bemg  also  favorable, 
anywhere  about  the  precincts  of  this  place  would  be  a  fine 
plac.  for  a  mission  station,  as  there  are  Indians  always 
about  iiic  place ;  and  I  also  found  the  Indians  more  favor- 
able toward  Christianity  than  they  were  when  I  used  to  be 
traveling  up  and  down  among  them. 

During  my  short  stay  here,  Mr.  McKenzie  kindly  invited 
me  to  partake  of  the  good  things  of  his  own  table,  which 
was  loaded  down  with  what  was  good. 

Wednesday,  IQth. — Early  this  morning  I  started  oft"  in  a 
small  canoe,  which  I  had  hired  on  my  own  private  account. 
The  distance  from  Fort  Alexander  to  the  upper  Fort  Gar- 
ry is  about  one  hundred  miles,  which  makes  in  all  from 
Lac  la  Pi  "tic  to  the  upper  Fort  Garry  over  four  hundred 
miles. 

At  twelve  o'clock  to-day,  arrived  at  the  Iron  Wood  Point, 
which  is  a  sort  of  a  harbor  for  canoes  to  run  into  in  bad 


W  i 


38 


JOLllXAl.   Ol     IHi; 


weather,  and  had  to  remain  here  during  the  whole  after- 
noon, being  wind-bound. 

Thursdcn/,  ilth. — At  ten  o'clock  this  morning  the  wind 
abated,  and  at  one  o'clock  we  reached  the  Big  Stone  Point. 
Here,  unexpectedly,  I  met  my  son  Peter,  in  a  small  canoe, 
on  his  way  to  Fort  Alexander  to  meet  me.  I  thank  the 
Lord  for  sparing  the  life  of  my  son,  and  mine,  and  permit- 
ting us  once  mc.e  to  meet  each  other.  Our  meeting  was, 
therefore,  a  joyful  one.  My  son  and  his  crew  consisted  of 
one  young  Mr.  McKenzie  and  three  Indian  boys ;  their  provis- 
ions, a  piece  of  ham,  half  a  loaf  of  bread,  half  a  pound  of 
tea,  one  pound  of  sugar.  Each  had  a  tin  cup.  They  had 
a  small  kettle,  but  no  plate  nor  knife ;  and  it  was  well  for 
them  that  they  had  not  to  spend  a  night  by  themselves. 
They,  of  course,  returned  from  here,  and  passed  the  Broken 
Head  River ;  came  to  a  point  of  marsh  in  the  neighborhood 
of  the  mouth  of  Red  River,  and  (,'ncamped  for  the  niglit. 

When  we  came  to  the  mouth  of  the  river,  we  had 
to  pass  through  marshes  about  six  miles  long  before  we 
arrived  at  the  real  banks  of  the  river.  Ducks  are  very  nu- 
mei'ous  here  during  the  summer  season.  Geese  are  only 
seen  here  in  the  spring  in  large;  bands.  About  eight  miles 
from  the  mouth  of  the  river  commences  the  Indian  settle- 
ment, which  was  founded  by  tiie  Rev.  William  Cochrane, 
one  of  the  missionaries  sent  out  to  this  country  by  the 
Church  Missionary  Society.  The  whole  Indian  settlement 
is  about  four  miles  in  length,  the  upper  part  of  which  is 
settled  by  the  Muscaigoes,  and  the  lower  part  by  the  Chip- 
peways.  The  Muscaigoes  occupy  most  of  the  ground,  and 
their  mission  and  church  look  most  beautiful.  The  houses 
are  built  on  both  sides  of  the  riv«r.  From  the  mouth  of  the 
liver  to  the  upper  end  of  the  Indian  settlement  there  are 
twelve  miles,  and  from  this  to  the  Lower  Fort  Garry  are 
SIX  miles.  This  fort  belongs* to  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company. 
AH  the  houses  are  built  of  stone,  and  they  are  fortified  by 
a  stone  wall  around  them,  which  is  about  nine  feet  high. 
Tiiis  would  not  stand  well  against  a  well-disciplined  army 
with  cannon,  for  they  could  easily  throw  up  temporary  lad- 
ders and  scale  the  walls.  The  banks  where  this  fort  is 
situated  are  the  hicjhest  in  the  settlement,  so  there  is  no  fear 
of  a  flood  overflowing  the  banks.  From  this  fort  to  the 
White  Horse  Plain,  which  is   about  forty-eight  miles  dis- 


^ 


KEV.    I'KTKn    JACOUa. 


89 


1 


tant,  houses  are  to  be  seen  all  alo.ig  the  river,  especially 
on  the  west  side.  Fine  farms  and  excellent  land  are  to 
be  seen  all  the  way.  The  farmers  hcM'e  do  not  manure 
their  fields :  they  say  that  if  they  would  manure  them  the 
wheat  would  grow  up  into  stalks  without  any  grain.  This 
plainly  shows  the  great  richness  of  the  soil.  The  soil  of  the 
whole  country  is  of  a  dark  loamy  clay.  On  the  west  side 
of  the  river  are  prairies  e.xtending  many  miles  back,  with 
very  few  trees,  and  a  little  scrubby  oak  and  poplar.  The 
prairies  appear  to  the  traveler's  eye  as  an  immense  ocean  : 
there  is  nothing  to  attract  the  attention  of  the  eye.  I  be- 
lieve that  the  whole  prairie  country,  for  hundreds  of  miles, 
toward  the  Rocky  Mountain,  is  excellent  soil  and  rich  coun- 
try. In  these  prairies  of  the  western  world  thei-e  is  room 
for  a  million  or  more  of  farmers — I  mean  the  whole  prairie 
country  on  the  east  side  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  where 
thousands  of  buffaloes  rove  on  the  Biitish  territories,  and 
more  on  the  American.  But  there  is  no  timber  to  be 
found  in  the  plains  ;  and  therefore  if  men  would  settle 
here,  they     ould  have  to  build  their  houses  of  brick. 

On  the  flats  of  Red  River,  from  the  Lower  Fort  Garry 
and  upward,  grow  large  elm  trees  :  this  is  the  only  hard 
timber  worth  speaking  of.  The  distance  between  the  Lower 
Fort  Garry  and  the  Upper  Fort  Gariy  is  eighteen  miles. 
This  Upper  Fort  Garry  is  situated  on  the  banks  of  the 
Assitiibonie  River,  which  falls  into  the  Red  River,  and 
is  a  much  stronger  fort  than  the  other.  All  the  houses 
are  built  of  wood,  except  two,  which  are  built  of  stone. 
In  the  summer  season,  the  scenery  here  looks  very  beau- 
tiful. 

There  are  four  churches  in  the  whole  settlement,  belong- 
ing to  the  Church  of  England,  the  largest  of  which  is  St. 
Andrews,  at  the  Grand  Rapids.  This  is  a  beautiful  build- 
ing of  stone.  Another  church  is  about  to  be  built  by  the 
Church  Missionary  Society  on  the  Assinibonie  River ;  and 
preparations  are  made  by  the  Presbyterian  community  for 
erecting  a  church  at  the  Frog  Plain,  which  is  about  five 
miles  below  the  Upper  Fort  Garry.  Mr.  Black,  the  Pres- 
byterian clergyman,  is  an  excellent  man.  It  is  not  quite  a 
year  since  he  came  to  the  settlement  fi-om  Canada.  There 
are  five  clergymen  of  the  Church  of  England,  and  a  bishop 
named  David  Anderson,  wIil  is  a  very  good  and  kind  man. 


40 


JorRNAI-    OV    THK 


He  is  doing  all  he  can  for  the  Indians.    There  is  also  a  Ro- 
man Catholic  bishop,  and  three  or  four  priests. 

When  I  came  to  the  settlement,  I  found  that  there 
had  been  a  flood  there  this  spring.  Nearly  every 
day  during  the  flood,  houses,  barns,  itc,  were  seen  floating 
down  the  river  from  the  upper  part  of  the  settlement.  The 
sight  was  really  awful.  The  settlor^i  were  obliged  to  leave 
their  houses  and  property,  and  tent  out  on  the  hills  and 
mountains  around  them.  Very  much  property  was  lost  on 
the  whole ;  but  only  one  life  was  lost,  and  this  was  the  ser- 
vant of  the  bishop.  It  will  be  long  before  the  inhabitants 
of  the  settlement  are  in  the  same  condition  as  formerly. 
Timber  is  now  very  scarce,  and  it  must  be  brought  down 
from  the  Pembina,  which  is  sixty  miles  from  the  set- 
tlement, before  any  houses  are  built.  It  is  a  great  pity 
that  the  inhabitants  of  this  place  make  not  their  houses  of 
brick  instead  of  wood ;  for  they  would  stand  much  longer, 
and  they  would  be  nearly  as  cheap  as  wood  houses.  Many 
of  the  inhabitants,  however,  on  the  lower  part  of  the  settle- 
ment are  now  building  stone  houses.  There  are  seventeen 
wind-mills  and  two  water-mills.  There  are  seven  or  eight 
schools  in  the  settlement.  The  gentlemen  and  ladies  that 
come  to  church  come  in  high  style — that  is,  with  their 
horses,  and  carriages,  and  buggies  of  the  London  make ; 
and  many  of  them  come  on  horseback.  Most  of  these  gen- 
tlemen are  those  who  retired  from  the  service  of  the  Hon. 
Hudson's  Bay  Company,  formerly  called  chief  factors  and 
chief  traders.  The  company  have  two  large  stores  in  the 
settlement,  one  at  the  upper  and  one  at  the  lower  fort, 
where  they  have  warehouses  filled  with  all  sorts  of  mer- 
;handise  and  liquors  of  different  sorts.  The  wines  are  of 
the  superior  kind.  The  gentlemen  of  the  company  have 
everything  pretty  much  their  own  way. 

Formerly,  wild  buffalo  used  to  be  found  in  the  woods, 
at  the  mouth  of  Red  Ri  er,  and  on  the  prairies  along  the 
river,  but  none  are  now  to  be  found  within  twenty  days' 
journey  of  the  south-west  side  of  the  settlement,  as  they 
have  been  driven  away  and  killed ;  but  moose  and  reindeer 
are  still  to  be  found  in  the  woods  at  the  mouth  of  Red 
River.  They  are  also  pretty  numerous  in  Lac  la  Pluie 
district. 

Monday,  28th  June. — Ijpft  the   Grand   Rapids,  where 


■^ 

■^ 


>     r^ 


■<•! 


REV.    TKTKR  JACOBS. 


41 


aRo- 


>        0 


i 


my  son  and  I  boarded  in  a  private  house.  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
M.,  our  hosts,  were  very  kind  to  us  while  we  staid  with 
them. 

Went  then  to  Stone  Fort  for  my  voyaging  provisions, 
I  was  not  a  little  disappointed  when  I  could  not  get  a 
pound  of  butter.  I  was  ^..jved  at  the  conduct  of  one 
Mr.  Lane,  a  clerk.  Before  he  came  into  the  shop,  I  had 
got  some  biscuit  and  a  ham  ;  and  evidently,  by  his  behavior, 
I  would  not  have  got  these  had  he  been  by  when  they 
were  put  down.  I  cannot  believe  that  times  in  Red 
River  are  so  hard  as  that  a  passer  by  cannot  purchase  a 
pound  of  butter  for  his  voyage.  I  am  sure  had  J.  Black, 
Esquire,  been  here  he  would  have  given  evorything  neces- 
sary. He  assured  me  on  last  Saturday  that  I  would  get 
anything  I  required  at  the  Stone  Fort  for  m)'^  journey. 
When  Mr.  Ross,  a  retired  chief  factor,  heard  that  I  had 
been  refused  a  pound  of  butter,  he  cheerfully,  with  his  usual 
kindness,  gave  me  two  or  three  pounds  from  his  own  stock, 
gratis.  I  owe  this  gentleman  many  thanks  for  kindness 
shown  me  and  my  family  by  him,  when  I  was  at  Rossville, 
at  the  commencement  of  that  mission.  May  he  ever  live 
before  the  Lord ! 

At  one  o'clock  we  went  down,  and  had  the  pleasure  of 
dining  with  Rev.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Cockran  at  the  Indian  Mis- 
sion station.  After  dinner  I  parted  with  my  son,  who  is 
engaged  with  the  Bishop  of  Rupert's  Land  to  teach  one  of 
his  principal  schools  during  the  coming  year.  Having 
hired  two  men  and  a  canoe,  I  made  a  start,  and  only  went 
to  the  mouth  of  the  Red  River. 

Tuesday,  l^th. — Al  day-break,  some  unknown,  evil- 
minded  Indian  fired  a  gun  through  my  tent  with  shot.  The 
report  of  the  gun  made  me  jump  up  from  my  bed ;  and  I 
asked  my  bowsman  if  he  had  killed  a  duck  or  a  goose, 
supposing  that  he  must  have  fired  at  something  of  the 
kind;  but  he  asked  if  I  had  killed  anything  by  tiring,  he 
thinking  I  was  the  person  who  had  fired  the  gun  so  near 
the  tent,  as  he  was,  like  myself,  asleep,  but  was  only 
awakened  by  the  report  of  the  gun.  But,  on  examination, 
I  found  that  five  grains  of  shot  had  passed  through  my 
tent.  I  suppose  that  the  unknown  enemy  fired  at  the  tent 
to  frighten  us  away  from  our  encampment,  so  that  in  the 
hiirry  of  our  departing  we  might  leave  something  for  him 


42 


JDLKNAI-    OK    THE 


to  pick  up.  I  could  not  imaolnc  tluit  he  intended  to  kill 
any  of  us,  jis  he  did  not  know  who  we  were,  not  having 
seen  any  one;  during  the  previous  evening. 

IVfdncfi/d//,  30th. — All  day,  the  wind  being  contrary,  we 
did  not  budijc. 

Thursday,  1st  of  July. — Fine  and  calm  weather;  made 
and  passed  the  Grassy  Narrows,  and  encamped  near  the 
Grind  Stone  Point,  and  must  have  made  over  fifty  miles 
to-day  A  great  deal  of  the  coast  we  passed  to-day  has 
good  soil,  which  might  be  cultivated,  but  no  timber  which 
may  be  used  for  building,  * 

Friday,  2d. — We  sailed  to  the  Grind  Stone  Point ;  here 
stopped  an  hour.  The  point  takes  its  name  from  the  qual- 
ity of  stone  found  about  it.  For  miles  along  this  coast  are 
quarries  of  excellent  grind  and  limestone,  which  may  an- 
swer for  buildings ;  and  I  wonder  that  the  inhabitants  of 
Red  River  do  not  make  use  of  it  for  their  stone  buildings, 
as  it  is  open  water  all  the  way,  and  may  be  boated  to  any 
part  of  the  settlement.  Having  staid  here  an  hour,  we 
sailed  across  the  grand  traverse  of  Lake  Winnipeg,  and 
landed  on  the  north-eastern  coast.  The  coast  extending 
from  Fort  Alexander  to  tlie  end  of  the  lake  is  a  mere  des- 
ert. The  points  are  of  bare  granite  rock  ;  and  now  and  then 
you  see  a  bay  Avith  a  sandy  beach  ;  and  its  stinted  timber, 
and  the  general  appearance  of  the  country,  tell  the  sum- 
mer traveler  that  the  winters  in  these  regions  of  country 
must  be  awfully  severe.  The  lake  itself  has  an  abundance 
of  fish,  of  excellent  quality, — white  fish  and  sturgeon.  The 
white  fish  are  the  staple  food  of  the  inhabitants  of  these 
out-of-the-way  regions.  The  sturgeon  of  this  lake  are  su- 
perior to  any  which  may  be  found  in  any  part  of  the  world. 
There  are  fur-bearing  animals  to  be  found  in  its  wild  woods, 
both  of  a  common  and  rich  sort.  This  evening  we  encamp- 
ed at  the  Dog's  Head. 

Saturday  3d. — Reached  the  Rabit  Point  in  the  forenoon, 
and  were  detained  during  the  rest  of  the  day  by  contrary 
wind  and  rain. 

Sunday,  Ath. — Being  calm  and  fine,  we  went  on,  and  ar- 
rived at  Berere's  River  at  ten  o'clock,  where  I  was  kindly  re- 
ceived by  Mr.  Cummings,  a  postmaster  in  charge.  Ac 
four  o'clock  we  met  together  for  religious  worship :  wLon 
I  was  about  giving  out  my  text  to  preach,  I  asked  Mr. 


I 

t 
I 


REV.   I'JfiTKU  JAC'OUS. 


48 


ended  to  kill 
,  not  having 

contrary,  we 

jather;  made 
ped  near  the 
er  fifty  miles 
d  to-day  has 
timber  which 

e  Point ;  here 
om  the  qual- 
this  coast  are 
lich  may  an- 
ihabitants  of 
)ne  buildings, 
joated  to  any 
an  hour,  we 
V^innipeg,  and 
1st  extending 
s  a  mere  des- 
now  and  then 
tinted  timber, 
tell  the  sum- 
ns  of  country 
an  abundance 
turgeon.  The 
ants  of  these 
is  lake  are  su- 
of  the  world. 
ts  wild  woods, 
g  we  encamp- 

the  forenoon, 
j?"  by  contrary 

nt  on,  and  ar- 
was  kindly  re- 
charge. Ac 
orship :  wL^n 
,  I  asked  Mr. 


I 


Cummings  in  what  language  they  wished  the  sermon  to  be 
delivered ;  he  said,  "  In  Indian."  The  peoj)K'  paid  veiy 
good  attention  to  my  discourse  ;  and  there  was  a  goodly 
number  of  pagan  Indians  present,  and  I  sometimes  aimed 
at  their  superstitious  notions.    They  also  paid  good  attention. 

My  men  preferring  sleeping  out,  we  went  out  of  the  bay 
and  slept  on  a  rocky  island.  On  leaving  the  house  of  Mr. 
Cummings,  he,  like  a  good  Christian,  gave  us  a  good  large 
sturgeon  and  some  butter.  May  the  good  man  never  want 
butter  in  his  days  ! 

Monday,  bth. — We  are  now  about  one  hundred  and  fifty 
miles  from  the  Red  River,  and  we  are  yet  to  make  one  hun- 
dred and  thirty  to  reach  Rossville,  and  the  lake  itself  is  con- 
sidered something  over  two  hundred  miles.  This  evening 
we  encamped  at  the  Poplar  Point.  A  long  day's  voyage 
to-day. 

Tuesday,  Gth. — Head  Avind  all  day,  and  did  not  stir  from 
our  encampment.  0  it  is  sickening  to  be  so  often  wind- 
bound. 

Wednesday,  1th. — Calm  this  morning  ;  and  in  the  after- 
non  fair  wind  getting  up,  we  soon  hoisted  sail  and  reached 
the  Spider  Islands,  but  too  late  to  proceed  on  to  the  outlet 
of  the  Winnipeg,  though  it  was  within  view. 

ThurSiMy,  8th. — The  wind  was  still  fair  but  rather  too 
strong  for  oiu*  frail  bark :  we  however  ventured,  and  sailed 
over  a  very  rough  sea.  Our  canoe  now  and  then  shipped 
some  water,  and  one  of  us  was  constantly  employed  in 
bailing  it  out  as  fast  as  it  came  in.  It  required  no  small 
degree  of  courage  to  sail  in  such  a  craft  as  ours.  No  gen- 
tleman would  risk  any  valuable  property  in  these  small 
canoes  of  birch  bark,  much  less  his  life.  On  this  voyage  I 
had  the  management  of  the  sail,  being  accustomed  to  voy- 
aire  in  the  small  canoes,  knowing  when  to  furl  and  unfurl 
the  sail,  and  knowing  too  what  a  small  canoe  can  bear.  We 
at  last  entered  a  harbor,  went  ashore  and  got  our  breakfast. 
The  men  Avere  now  praising  the  canoe,  how  bravely  it  navi- 
gated the  boisterous  Winnipeg.  But,  lifting  up  my  hand  to 
heaven,  saying,  "  There  is  our  guide  and  preserver  ! "  the 
two  men,  being  Christians,  understood  my  meaning,  but  said 
nothing.  Coming  through  the  lake,  I  killed  many  ducks, 
and  two  geese.  One  was  very  fat ;  and  while  we  were  at 
breakfast  there  were  many  pelicans  flying  about  us,  and 


44 


JOLKNAI.  OF  THK 


some  were  feeding  in  the  bays ;  but  imving  no  caps  for  my 
gun,  they  escaped  unmolested.  Being  nuw  culm,  we  pro- 
ceeded through  the  Pliiy  Gn^en  Luke,  and  entered  a  river 
wliich  brouglit  us  to  Rossville.  The  appearance  of  the 
country  is  most  dismal.  Though  the  summer  has  already 
set  in,  still  the  country  is  not  divested  of  the  ctlects  of  the 
intense  cold  winter,  which  generally  continues  eight  or  nine 
months  in  this  miserable  region.  Barren  rocks,  here  and 
tliere  a  small  cluster  of  trees,  willows,  and  a  few  stinted 
pine  or  fir,  dwarfed  by  the  cold,  which  ever  prevails  here, 
and  nothmg  to  relieve  the  eye  from  the  cheerless  view  be- 
fore it. 

None  but  the  worldling,  whose  object  is  the  accu- 
mulation of  wealth,  could  be  a  willing  inhabitant  of  this 
inhospitable  region  ;  or  he  whose  object  is  more  exalted 
and  more  noble  than  the  former,  namely,  the  salvation  of 
the  aboriginal  inhabitants  of  this  waste,  howling  desert,  by 
the  preaching  of  the  gospel  to  them. 

At  fiv(!  o'clock  arrived  at  Norway  House.  This  is  one 
of  the  principal  establishments  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Com- 
pany, in  these  parts,  being  central,  and  an  inland  depot 
where  all  the  brigades  of  the  northern  department  ^except 
McKenzie's  River)  meet  on  their  way  down  to  York  Fac- 
tory. 

G.  Barnston,  Esquire,  rs  chief  factor,  is  in  charge,  who 
kindly  received  me  on  my  arrival,  and  invited  me  to  tea, 
which  I  readily  accepted,  and  after  which  proceeded  down 
10  the  Rossvile  Mission  Station,  which  is  about  one  and  a 
half  miles  below,  where  I  found  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Mason  and 
family,  all  well.  I,  just  coming  from  Europe,  and  through 
Canada,  they,  of  course,  expected  every  information  rela- 
tive to  the  civilized  and  Christian  w^orld ;  and,  as  a  matter 
of  course,  I  cheerfully  gave  them  such  information  as  I  pos- 
sessed concerning  men,  with  matters  and  things. 

Friday,  9th. — After  breakfast  and  prayer,  Mr.  Mason 
and  I  went  out  to  take  a  view  of  the  misson  buildings  and 
premises,  and  also  the  Indian  houses.  The  appearance  of 
the  whole  mission  is  very  pleasing. 

The  church  is  thirty  by  sixty  feet  l.jng,  with  a  steeple 
and  bell.  It  has  lately  been  weather- boarded,  and  painted 
both  in  and  outside,  us  well  as  the  pews  and  free  seats.  It 
lias  a  beautiful  appearance  from  a  distance ;  and  taking  it  all 


'] 


REV.   PETKK  JACOBS. 


46 


[pH  tor  my 
we  pro- 
cd  a  river 
Ice  of  the 
lis  already 
Jets  of  the 
lit  or  nine 
liere  and 
|}w  stinted 
'ails  here, 
view  be- 
lie  accu- 
it  of  this 
■e  exalted 
vation  of 
Jesert,  by 

his  is  one 
Jay  Com- 
nd  depot 
it  (except 
ork  Fac- 

iige,  who 
e  to  tea, 
led  down 
ne  and  a 
!ison  and 
through 
ion  rela- 
a  matter 
as  I  pos- 

'.  Mason 
ings  and 
ance  of 

steeple 
painted 
iats.  It 
ng  it  all 


:* 


'] 


in  all,  I  think  it  would  not  disgrace  any  country  town  in  Can- 
ada. Leaving  the  church,  we  went  into  the  large  school- 
house,  well  filled  with  day  scholars  :  heard  some  of  the  lead- 
ing classes  say  their  lessons,  who  said  them  very  well ;  and 
they  sing  w(!ll.  I  am  informed  by  the  schoolmaster,  that 
when  they  all  attend,  he  has  seventy-four  boys  and  girls. 
There  were  about  fifty  present,  the  others  being  away  with 
their  parents  in  quest  of  food  in  these  hard  times. 

The  next  mission  building  wo  visited  was  what  Mr.  Mason 
calls  the  Jointing  Office.  This  is  a  good  house  for  the  mis- 
sion family  to  live  in,  being  well  built,  weather-boarded, 
and  painted,  with  a  shingle  roof,  and  inside  is  lined  and 
painted  also,  and  in  every  respect  well  adapted  for  a  good 
winter  house  in  these  regions  of  ice  and  snow.  The  size 
of  this  house  is  twenty  feet  wide  by  thirty-six  feet  long. 
One  of  the  rooms  is  occupied  by  the  schoolmaster  ;  one 
part  is  used  for  the  printing  business ;  and  1  must  say  that 
the  Rev.  Mr.  Mason  and  his  colleague,  Mr.  Steinhauer,  in 
this  department,  deserve  commendation  for  their  efforts  to 
promote  the  knowledge  of  Christianity  among  the  benight- 
ed, ignorant  heathen  of  this  counrty,  through  the  medium 
of  the  books  they  have  printed.  They  have  piinted  the 
Wesleyan  Catechism  No.  1,  an  edition  of  hymns,  part  of  the 
Sunday  service  of  the  Methodists,  also  the  Wesleyan  Discip- 
line, and  the  Gospel  of  St.  John.  The  demand  for  these 
books  is  so  great  that  they  are  not  able  to  comply  with 
the  demands  as  fast  as  they  could  wish,  their  printing  opera- 
tions not  being  carried  on  so  rapidly  as  those  of  the  civilized 
world,  for  want  of  a  better  press,  and  other  materials  requi- 
site in  order  to  carry  on  the  business  successfully  ;  though 
hundreds  of  their  printing  have  been  issued,  and  these 
works  have  gone  into  those  parts  of  the  country  where  the 
missionary  can  never  have  access. 

Respecting  the  mission  house :  that,  after  eleven  years* 
standing,  now  requires  a  few  repairs ;  the  roofing  being 
made  of  bark,  which  requires  almost  annual  repairs,  which 
not  a  little  increases  the  expenses  of  these  missions ; 
and  were  all  the  mission  buildings  weather-boarded  and 
roofed,  then  renewing  of  tlie  bark  roofs  and  raudding 
the  walls  would  in  some  degree  lessen  the  expense  incurred. 
After  having  viewed  the  mission  premises,  we  Avent  to  see 
the  Indian  houses,  which  I  superintended  in  building  eleven 


L 


46 


JOURNAL  OF  THE 


years  ago.  Some  of  them  are  still  standing,  and  inhabited 
by  the  same  people.  They  appear  to  be  in  tolerably  good 
order  yet ;  but  others  have  been  pulled  down,  and  better 
houses  built  in  their  stead.  I  found  also  that  another 
street  has  been  made  since,  and,  of  course,  the  houses  in 
this  street  are  lately  and  better  finished. 

The  mission  potato  fields,  as  well  as  those  belonging  to 
the  Indians,  are  looking  well,  and,  no  doubt,  will  reap  a 
good  crop ;  but  no  grain  of  any  kind  can  grow  to  any  ma- 
turity here,  *hc  climate  being  too  rigorous. 

After  passing  and  repassing  the  village,  we  went  into  the 
house  wherein  I  lived  when  I  was  at  this  station,  which 
may  now  be  called  the  Schoolmaster's  house  (should  he 
have  a  family.)  It  is  natural  and  inviting  to  me,  and  is  in  a 
very  good  condition  yet,  notwithstanding  eleven  years' 
standincr. 

Sunday,  1 1  th. — At  seven  o'clock  this  morning  Mr.  Mason 
began  reading  the  Sunday  service  of  the  Methodists,  and  a 
few  of  the  Indians  responded.  After  the  lessons,  collects, 
and  prayers,  he  then  read  a  sermon  translated  into  the  In- 
dian, written  in  the  syllabic  characters.  He  performed  the 
whole  of  the  service  Avell,  and  read  his  sermon  well ;  but  I 
am  not  a  competent  judge  of  this  mixed  language  of  Ojib.- 
way,  Cree,  and  Swampy.  The  Cree  and  Swampy  are  nearer 
kin  to  each  other  than  either  to  the  noble  and  majestic 
Ojibway ;  and  that  is  the  language  I  profess  to  understand. 

We  went  over  to  the  company's  fort,  where  Mr.  Mason 
read  the  English  service,  and  after  which  I  preached  in 
English  to  a  respectable  congregation,  who  paid  marked 
attention  to  my  d'scourse.  I  trust  some  good  has  been 
done  to  the  edification  of  some  of  my  hearers.  The  service 
being  over,  Mr.  Barnston  kindly  invited  us  to  dine  Avith  him. 
I  find  this  gentleman  is  of  high  and  polished  education; 
and  the  best  of  all  is,  that  he  loves  and  fears  God. 

At  three  o'clock  this  afternoon  we  held  another  service 
in  the  mission  chUrch,  which  was  quite  full,  as  many  of  the 
fort  people  came  down  to  join  our  afternoon  worship.  Mr. 
Mason  read  the  hymns  in  the  Cree.  I  prayed,  and  had  a 
tolerable  good  time  in  preaching  to  my  native  brethren. 
Once  or  twice  I  reminded  the  congregation  of  the  many 
precious  seasons  we  had  together  in  the  house  of  God  eleven 
years   ago,    and  some   of   the  old    members  caught  the 


f       ! 


REV.   PETER  JACOBS. 


47 


id  inhabited 
erably  good 
,  and  better 
lat  another 
e  houses  in 

elonging'to 
will  reap  a 
to  any  ma- 

3nt  into  the 
tion,  which 
[should  he 
and  is  in  a 
years* 


ven 


Mr.  Mason 
lists,  and  a 
s,  collects, 
itothe  In- 
ormed  the 
ell ;  but  I 
e  of  Ojib.- 
are  nearer 
1  majestic 
iderstand. 
fr.  Mason 
ached  in 
i  marked 
has  been 
le  service 
with  him. 
diication ; 

5r  service 
ny  of  the 
lip.  Mr. 
id  had  a 
brethren, 
le  many 
)d  eleven 
ight  the 


spirit  of  this ;  and  I  have  reason  to  thank  God  that  they 
I  were  encouraged  to  go  on  their  way  rejoicing,  and  that 

I  they  were  edified.     The  men  and  women  of  this  congrega- 

^  tion  were  respectably  clad,  and  sung  well.    The  church,  at 

f  both  morning  and  afternoon  service,  was  well  attended  ; 

I  and  I  am  informed  by  Mr.  Mason,  that  when  the  men  be- 

f  longing  to  this  village,  and  passing  brigades  stopping  foi 

I  the  Sabbath,  the  church  at  such  times  is  crowded  to  over- 

l  flowing,  as  it  occurred  again  on  the  following  Sunday. 

^  At  seven  o'clock,  we  had  a  prayer  meeting  in  the  church, 

^  and  many  of  those  who  prayed,  referred  to  the  good  things 

they  had  heard  during  this  Sabbath  day.     This  is  the  pro- 
I  cess  of  Sunday  labor  which  Mr.  Mason  has  to  go  through 

I  every  Sabbath  day  when  there  is  no  one  to  assist  him.    On 

'■^  reviewing  the  labors  of  this  Sabbath,  the  appearance  of  the 

church  and  the  congregation  of  this  mission  alone,  the  zeal 
they  manifested  in  the  house  of  God  their  Saviour,  O  how  I 
f  wished  that  some  of  the  supporters  of  the  cause  of  mis- 

-  sions  were  eye  witnesses!     I  verily  think  they  would  say 

that  they  have  not  thrown  away  their  money  in  vain,  and 
would  be  impelled  more  than  ever  to  do  more  for  the  inter- 
I  est  of  the  missions  in  those  territories.    On  inquiry,  I  learn- 

ed, the  number  of  members  in  society  is  one  hundred  and 
twenty,  and  ten  on  trial  for  membership.    The  whole  num- 
ber of  people  attached  to  this  station  is  about  three  hun- 
dred. 
•J  Wednesday,  I4tk. — Having  remained  here  to  this  day, 

and  thinking  that  it  was  time  for  me  to  proceed  on  my 
journey,  I  bought  a  small  canoe  and  provisions,  and  hired 
Ji,  two  men  for  my  voyage  down  to  Oxford  Mission  station, 

and  to  York  Factory.     This  evening  I  again  preached  to 
♦  the  congregation  assembled  for  religious  worship. 

During  my  stay  at  this  station,  Mr.  Mason  and  I  had 
some  consultation  on  the  subject  of  the  Sascatchwan  Mis- 
sion. Read  some  letters  received  from  the  Indians  in  that 
quarter,  who  pressingly  called  for  a  missionary  and  teacher. 
We  concluded,  the  least  that  can  be  done  for  the  present 
was  to  occupy  that  station  for  two  years  longer,  thinking 
that  in  the  mean  time  something  will  be  done  for  that  and 
the  other  mission  stations  belonging  to  the  Wesleyan  Mis- 
V  sionary  Society  in  the  Hudson's  Bay  Territories. 

4  Benjamin  Sinclair,  a  local  preacher,  with  his  family,  agreed 

1  4 


48 


JOURNAL    OF   THE 


I'  h 


to  go  and  occupy  that  station  for  the  said  terra  of  two  yean, 
strictly  instructing  him  not  to  incur  any  unnecessary  ex- 
pense. He  has  been  there  already ;  and  inquiring  of  him 
as  to  the  number  of  Indians  who  were  desirous  of  being  in- 
structed in  Christianity,  he  said,  "  Too  many  for  me  to  tell 
you."  I  said,  "  That  is  well  said ;  we  will  leave  it  there." 
This  station  is  situated  in  a  rich  country  of  wild  animals, 
such  as  buffalo,  moose,  deer,  bears,  Ducks,  and  geese,  and 
fish  in  abundance.  In  fact  everything  concerning  that  sta- 
tion is  favorable.  The  soil  and  climate  are  such  as  will 
raise  any  kind  of  grain  which  any  one  may  wish  to  raise. 

Thursday,  15th. — After  breakfast,  loaded  our  canoe. 
The  men  and  women  of  the  village  came  and  bade  me  fare- 
well at  my  departure.  Mr.  Mason  and  men  accompanied 
me  a  considerable  distance  down  the  lake,  and  we  dined 
together  ;  ana,  after  we  had  a  word  oi  prayer,  we  parted. 
He  went  back  to  his  station,  and  I  proceeded  on  to  Jack- 
son's Bay  Mission  Station.  Having  passed  through  rivers, 
lakes,  and  nine  portages,  we  met  with  about  thirty  freight- 
ing boats  from  York  Factory  ;  among  them  were  the  boats 
of  my  old  acquaintance,  William  Sinclair,  Esquire. 

The  Sabbath  came  as  we  entered  the  Oxford  Lake,  and 
we  laid  by  for  the  day.  At  twelve  o'clock  we  had  prayers. 
As  there  were  only  three  of  us,  Ave  dispensed  with  the  rou- 
tine of  a  regular  service.  The  country  we  passed  during 
the  three  days'  voyage  is  the  same,  only  a  little  worse  in 
appearance — rocks  and  swamps — but  they  said  it  was  the 
country  for  furs  and  skins,  to  enrich  the  coffers  of  the  fur 
trade. 

Monday,  \%th. — At  eight  o'clock  arrived  at  the  Jack- 
son's Bay  Mission  Station,  where  I  was  welcomely  received 
by  Mr.  Steinhauer,  in  charge  of  the  station,  who,  with  the 
people  of  his  charge,  were  anxiously  waiting  for  my  arrival, 
but  were  quite  disappointed  when  I  informed  them  that  I 
had  net  come  to  stay, 

I  found  the  mission  premises,  which  have  been  liurriedly 
put  up,  in  such  a  state  as  would  require  not  less  than  £50 
to  put  them  in  a  habitable  and  comfortable  order.  The 
evening  after  I  arrived  I  baptized  an  infant,  which  was 
supposed  to  be  dying,  but  since  then  it  has  been  doing 
well. 

There  are  but  a  few  Indians  at  the  station  at  present. 


I 
I 


^ 


=S5S?SSi^3ia«i 


KLV.     rKTEU    JACOHS. 


49 


'two  yean, 
;essary  ex- 
ing  of  him 
if  being  in- 
me  to  tell 
}  it  there." 
Id  animals, 
geese,  and 
g  that  sta- 
ch  as  will 
to  raise. 
)ur  canoe, 
le  me  fare- 
companied 

we  dined 
ye  parted, 
n  to  Jack- 
igh  rivers, 
ty  freight- 
!  the  boats 
lire. 

Lake,  and 
d  prayers, 
h  the  rou- 
ed  during 

worse  in 
t  was  the 
of  the  fur 

the  Jack- 
j  received 
,  with  the 
ay  arrival, 
jm  that  I 

hurriedly 
than  £50 
ler.  The 
hich  was 
ien  doing" 

present. 


I 


I 


The  men  are  employed  in  boating  for  the  compnny,  and 
their  families  are  at  the  fort,  wlicre  they  are  fed.  Of  course 
they  will  always  be  there  on  these  conditions.  One  Indian 
house  has  been  put  up,  and  some  more  have  cut  and 
squared  their  timber  ready  for  building  their  houses. 
When  more  houses  are  built,  they  will  give  the  mission 
sttition  quite  an  improved  appeai'ance. 

I  find  mv  friend  Mr.  Steinhauer  is  laborinrj;  amoni^  this 
people  under  some  disadvanta^'es,  thoua,h  I  have  not  the 
least  doubt  that  he  is  doing  all  in  his  power  to  promote  the 
good  cause  here,  and  that  thf^i'o  is  some  fruit  of  his  labor. 
He  is  teaching  the  school ;  preaches  to  the  people  in  their 
own  language,  (he  is  nn  Ojibway  by  birth,)  and  also 
preaches  at  the  company's  fort  in  English,  for  the  benefit 
of  the  people  in  that  establishment ;  and  he  is  also  engaged 
in  the  work  of  translating  the  Scriptiu-es  into  the  Cree.  I 
say,  therefore,  that  he  is  fully  qualified,  as  far  as  these 
things  go  ;  nor  can  1  doubt  of  other  a.nd  higher  qualifications, 
indispensably  necessary  foi-  being  fully  enrolled  in  the  order 
of  the  ministry.  The  people  of  his  charge  see  the  necessity 
of  '•"'  mn;  amonrr  them  an  ordained  missionary,  who  may 
hf  .  ithority  to  marry,  and  baptize  them  and  their  chil- 
d.  ..,^.  To  further  Mr.  Steinhauer's  usefulness,  he  ought  to 
be  fully  set  apart  for  the  good  v.'ork,  and  be  ordained, 
which  would  enhance  the  prosperity  of  this  mission  station 
so  long  as  he  may  be  here.  I  hope,  therefore,  the  day  is 
not  far  distant  when  he  will  be  fully  set  apart  for  the  work 
of  the  Hiinistry. 

Sunday,  25th. — Another  Sabbath  day  has  come,  and  we 
cheerfully  commenced  our  work.  At  eight  o'clock  there 
was  a  Sunday  school.  Thoufjh  the  tumiber  of  scholars 
Avas  but  few,  yet  it  was  pleasing  to  see  how  well  Ihey  said 
their  lessons,  and  repeated  the  greater  pari  of  the  W(>sleyan 
Catechism.  No.  1  ;  and  they  sang  well.  At  eleven  o'clock 
we  assembled  togcthci'.  Mr.  Steinhauer  read  the  Sundav 
sei'vice  (»f  the  Methodists  and  the  lesson  for  the  day,  and  I 
preached  with  considerable  freedom.  The  small  congrega- 
tion was  deeply  attentive  ;  and  I  trust  that  some  good  has 
been  effected,  which  will  appear  hereafter.  At  three 
o'clock  Mr.  Steinhauer  preached  ;  and  in  the  evening  we 
had  a  prayer  meeting,  when  some  of  the  Indians  prayed. 

The  little  potato  fields  of  this  mission  station  are  looking 


'i      I 


50 


.^iJRNAL    OF   THE 


very  well.  The  Oxford,  or  Holy  Li.ke,  as  it  is  called  in  the 
map,  is  a  tine  large  lake  of  clear  water.  Fine  trout  are  to  be 
found  in  its  waters,  and  the  finest  white  fish  in  the  coun- 
try. It  is  interspersed  with  numerous  islands,  well  wooded 
w'  '  good  timber.  Its  main  shores  are  high  and  rocky, 
ana  in  some  of  its  deep  bays  is  pretty  good  soil  to  be  found, 
but  tlie  climate  is  too  severe  foi  raising  ary  kind  of  grain; 
but  pc'  ■»es  may  be  matured  at  some  seasons.  These  parts, 
being  lat  they  call  the  lower  country,  are  rocky,  but 
most'  vvampy.  However,  about  this  lake  there  is  a  good 
deal  01  timber — the  white  or  silver  pine,  which  is  sawn  into 
boards,  (fee,  for  buildinc; 

Friday  mornlny,  '30(h  July. — At  four  o'clock,  1  left  the 
Jackson's  Bay  Mission  station,  where  I  remained  nearly  two 
Aveeks,  and  have  had  ocular  demonstration  of  what  is  uoinor 
on  at  this  mission  station.  The  distance  from  the  station 
1o  the  company's  establishment  is  full  twenty  miles,  which 
is  one  of  the  disadvantages  attendant  upon  the  station — too 
far  from  the  fort.  At  about  twelve  o'clock  arrived  at  Ox- 
ford House,  where  I  was  received  by  Mr.  Robertson,  a  post- 
master in  charge  of  this  place.  The  Sabbath  being  too 
close  at  hand,  we  determined  to  remain  till  Monday.  There 
were  a  good  number  of  Indians ;  and  some  having  ex- 
pressed a  desire  to  have  their  children  baptized  ;  so  when 
Sunday  came  there  was  a  good  congregation,  when  Mr. 
Mason  preached  in  the  morning,  and  baptized  four  children 
of  a  once  most  noted  conjurer ;  and  in  the  afternoon  we 
had  another  service,  when  the  conjurer,  his  wife,  and  eldest 
son  came  .ind  offered  themselves  for  the  rite  of  baptizm  to 
be  administered  to  them,  and  ten  children  besides ;  so  that 
something  has  been  done  to-day,  and  may  God  add  his 
blessing !  ♦  Amen. 

Monday  inorning,  2d  August. — We  started  from  York 
Factory.  Tiie  greater  part  of  the  day  we  were  going  down 
in  a  circuitous  rivei-.  Ran  many  rapids  oi*  ripples  of  water, 
and  only  once  lifted  the  canoes  over  a  portage  of  about 
sixty  yards  long,  called  the  Trout  Fall ;  and  soon  after  this 
entered  Rice  Lake,  which  is  between  forty  and  fifty  miles, 
and  passing  the  lake  again,  entered  many  portages  and  run- 
ning places,  and  came  to  the  Swampy  Lake,  about  twelve 
miles  long  ;  at  the  end  of  which  is  the  beginning  of  rapids 
and  portages  to  the  Hill,  from  which  the  river  takes  its 


RKV.    PETETl  JACOBS. 


51 


lied  in  the 
it  are  to  be 
the  coun- 
cil wooded 
ind  rocky, 
be  found, 
of  grain ; 
lese  parts, 
ocky,   but 
is  a  good 
sawn  into 

I  left  the 
learly  two 
it  is  i)-oinjif 
lie  station 
les,  which 
ition — too 
ed  at  0\- 
m,  a  post- 
being  too 
y.    There 
ving  ex- 
so  when 
vhen  Mr. 
children 
inoon  we 
.nd  eldest 
aptizm  to 
so  that 
add  his 

om  York 
ng  down 
of  water, 
of  about 
after  this 
ty  miles, 
and  run- 
it  twelve 
of  rapids 
takes  its 


name;  and  passing  the  Hill  we  came  to  the  part  of  the 
river  called  the  Still  Water,  which  continues  for  a  consider- 
able distance,  till  within  a  short  distance  of  the  Rock — the 
last  of  the  rapids  are  falls  and  portages,  in  the  Hill  River, 
whence  commences  a  continuous  rapid,  going  at  the  rate 
of  eight  or  ten  miles  per  hour. 

From  the  Rock  to  York  Factory  is  one  hundred  miles, 
making  in  all,  from  Norway  House  to  the  factory,  four 
hundred  and  fifty  miles.  Meeting  with  no  remarkable  in- 
cident on  the  voyage  down  the  Hill  River,  and  going  down 
lightly  in  a  small  canoe,  we  of  course  went  expeditiously ; 
and  soon  passing  the  Hill  River  came  to  the  junction  with 
the  Foxes'  River.  Here  the  river  becomes  wider  and 
deeper,  and  the  current  is  somewhat  smoother,  but  equally 
strong  as  the  Hill  River.  After  a  few  hours'  passage 
down  the  Foxes'  River,  we  came  to  where  it  joins  with  a 
large  river,  which  they  call  Street  River.  Here  the  river 
is  still  wider,  at  some  places  a  quarter  or  lialf  a  mile  wide. 
It  looks  ^A\c  to  a  stranger.  Its  high  clay  bank,  white  as 
snow  from  a  distance,  the  stranger  would  think  that  the 
land  on  the  top  of  the  banks  was  good ;  but  no  :  it  is  one 
continuous  swamp  as  far  as  the  eye  can  reach — all  barren, 
only  here  and  there  a  small  cluster  of  stunted  pine,  and  a 
few  withered  juniper ;  and  withal,  this  is  the  country  of 
musquitoes.  The  only  pleasure  which  a  traveler  experiences 
along  these  rivers,  through  the  swampy  country,  is  to  pre- 
serve himself  as  best  he  can  from  being  eaten  up  by  these 
flies.  In  former  days  this  was  the  country  of  the  rein- 
deer ;  but  they  are  very  scarce  now-a-days,  so  also  are  fur- 
bearing  animals. 

The  Steel  River  brought  us  to  the  end  of  our  journey  in 
this  miserable  country,  and  whence  I  am  to  return.  The 
country  from  Oxford  House  is  much  the  same  as  other  parts 
already  described,  but,  perhaps,  much  worse  for  its  dismal 
and  desert-like  appearance  —  swamps,  lakes,  creeks,  and 
rivers ;  in  fact  there  is  more  water  than  dry  land ;  hence 
the  multitude  of  musquetoes,  which  increase  the  miseries  of 
traveling  in  this  country. 

On  our  sixth  day  from  Oxford  House  we  arrived  at  the 
general  depot,  York  Factory.  Here  are  extensive  ware- 
houses, wherein  English  goods  are  stored,  imported  from 
England^  apd  are  intended  for  the  whole  of  the  northern 


52 


JOL'RNAL    OF    IHli 


y  ?  r 


department  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Territories  ;  not  that  there 
Is  'i  factory  at  York  wliere  goods  are  manufactured,  as  peo- 
ple would  naturally  think  by  the  Avord  factory.  At  the 
time  the  ship  arrives  from  England,  the  place  is  quite  lively, 
like  some  seaports  in  the  civilized  world. 

At  York  Factory  there  are  numerous  small  white  './hales, 
which  come  up  the  river  to  the  wharfs  of  the  establish- 
ments, and  the  people  kill  them  to  feed  their  dogs  upon. 
Seals  also  are  found  here.  The  polar  bears  are  also  very 
plentiful,  ar  '^  valruses  along  the  coast  from  either  of  the 
factories.  the  seasons    of  spring  and  autumn,  it  is 

said,  geese  a.  ^  ducks  are  very  numerous  ;  and  the  company 
send  out  hunters  in  those  seasons,  who  kill  them  by  hun- 
dreds, and  then  salt,  them,  which  they  serve  out  as  rations 
to  their  people.  I  have  not  seen  any  of  the  Esquimaux 
here,  but  they  are  at  Church  Hill,  where  they  trade.  This 
is  an  out-port  of  York  Factory,  in  the  northern  direction 
from  the  factory.  The  Esquimaux  are  of  a  white  complex- 
ion, and  in  their  mode  of  living  they  are  exceedingly  filthy. 
None  of  this  people  trade  at  the  factory. 

On  the  arrival  of  Mr.  Mason  and  myself  at  York  Factory, 
we  were  kindly  received  by  W.  McTavish,  Esquire,  the 
governor  of  the  fort.  We  stayed  there  a  fortnight,  and  bap- 
tized over  thirty  persons,  which  number,  added  to  those 
baptized  at  Oxford  Mission,  make  over  sixty.  Let  the 
friends  of  missions  rejoice !  Even  in  the  Hudson's  Bay 
Territories,  where  the  cause  has  to  contend  with  opposing 
influences  existing,  perhaps,  nowhere  else,  it  is  progressing 
How  attentive  to  the  spoken  word  are  the  Indians  of  these 
territories  !  In  the  congregations  there  is  no  cougliing,  no 
going  out  and  in,  no  sneezing  with  a  whoop,  that  in  the  woods 
would  make  an  Indian  dodge  behind  a  tree,  and  look  to  his 
srun ;  but  every  one  is  as  quiet  and  still  as  they  would 
those  to  be  to  whom  they  themselves  were  speak- 
Were  gold  as  plenty  as  lead,  a  guinea  would  be  of 
Ithe  same  worth  as  a  bullet,  did  it  weigh  as  much.  The 
people  of  Canada  do  not,  nor  the  people  of  England,  value 
the  preached  word  as  they  should.  Did  they,  as  the  Indians 
of  Hudson's  Bay,  hear  a  preacher  perhaps  only  once  a  year, 
they  would  be  quiet  and  still  enough  during  service. 

After  anxiously   awaiting  the  arrival  of  the  Hudson's 
Bay  Company's  annual  ship  the  Prince  Jiupert,  it  arrive4 


i-> 


wish 
ing. 


'» 


REV.  PETER  JACOBS. 


68 


that  there 
ed,  as  peo- 
^  At  the 
luite  lively, 

ite  v/hales, 

estabh'sh- 
logs  upon. 

also  very 
her  of  the 
imn,  it  is 

company 
n  by  Ji  Un- 
as rations 
Esquimaux 
Me.    Tliis 

direction 
complex- 
ly filthy. 


:  Factorv, 
uire,  the 
and  bap. 
to  those 

Let  the 
>n's  Bay 
fjpposing 
afressing- 
of  these 
hing,  no 
le  woods 
k  Lo  his 
'  would 

speak- 
1  be  of 
>.  The 
',  value 
Indians 
a  year. 

idson*s 
irriye4 


on  the  15th  of  August,  on  Sabbath,  after  morning  service. 
We  expected  the  Rev.  John  Ryerson,  and  were  much  dis- 
appointed at  not  meeting  him.  I  received  a  letter  from 
him  per  ship,  in  which  he  gave  his  reasons  for  not  coming. 
I  felt  sorry  that  circumstances  assumed  such  a  form  as  to 
prevent  him  from  following  up  the  society's  plans. 


i 


I    'I 


RETURNING. 


Th$  follomng,  the  remainder  of  the  Journal  of  my  Journey  from  the 
Hudson's  Bay  Territories,  is  written  from  memory,  as  the  original 
papers  were  lost  in  Lake  Winnipeg. 


On  Monday,  the  16th,  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company's  ex- 
press canoe  left  for  Canada.  I  applied  for  a  passage,  but 
was  refused,  consequently  had  to  get  a  private  conveyance. 
I  was,  however,  offered  a  passage  to  England  in  the  Prince 
Rupert. 

I  had  made  arrangements  with  Mr.  Mason,  who  had 
given  his  canoe  and  men  to  convey  Mr.  Ryerson,  at  our 
own  charge,  to  Norway  House  and  Red  River ;  but  these 
arrangements  had  to  be  set  aside;  and  procuring  provis- 
ions, &c.,  with  all  haste,  in  my  own  single  canoe,  and  with 
two  men,  I  turned  my  face  homewa^-d.  Even  at  the  far 
end  of  a  long  journey,  there  is  a  pleas. 're  in  going  home. 

On  the  16th,  with  the  evening  tide,  which  rises  here  ten 
or  twelve  feet,  we  left  York  Factory.  The  tide  bore  us 
along  over  twelve  miles.  That  night  we  slept  on  the  beach. 
The  night  was  cold,  and  accustomed  for  some  time  past  to 
warm  bed-rooms,  I  did  not  sleep  much. 

I  will  describe  our  mode  of  traveling  up  York  River. 
The  men  alternately  towed  the  canoe  by  a  thirty-fathom  cod- 
line.  The  tow-path  is  not  a  planked  one — rocks,  stones, 
sand,  and  pornctimes  water  breast-high.  Thus  for  about  a 
hundred  miles,  and  with  a  strong  current  pulling  the  canoe 
the  other  way,  we  traveled  up  York  River.  I  walked 
nearly  all  the  way  and  tired  enough  I  was  when  we  got  to 
the  "  Rock,"  which  crosses  the  river  like  a  mill-dam. 

At  Fox  River  we  came  upon  a  flock  of  young  wild  geese. 
The  geese  could  fly  but  a  little,  and  we  had  a  "  wild  goose 
chase."  Every  man  to  his  goose,  in  water  and  out  of  wfttoi-, 


I    1  '■ 
VII 


II 


56 


JOURNAL  OP  THB 


river  at  this  place  are 
if  down  the  river  at  this 


through  brush,  over  brier,  heads  up,  heels  up,  every  man 
to  his  goose  !  The  banks  of  the 
forty  or  fifty  feet  high ;  and  in  goin 
same  place,  in  company  with  Mr.  Mason,  we  killed  twenty 
geese.  He  was  too  stout  to  roll  about  the  banks  and 
bushes  in  chase,  but,  perhaps,  did  as  much  service  to  the 
common  good  with  the  canoe  in  the  river,  by  picking  up 
the  dead  as  they  rolled  down  the  steep  bank.  The  pro- 
ceeds of  this  chase  weie  six  geese  in  excellent  condition. 

The  chase  being  ended,  we  were  ready  f(»r  lunch,  so  we 
set  about  it.  A  friend  at  the  fort  had  given  me  three  bot- 
tles of  ginger  beer ;  and  as  I  felt  somewhat  thirsty  from 
the  excitement  of  the  chase,  my  cook,  John,  set  about 
drawing  the  cork  of  one  of  the  bottles.  He  appeared  to  do 
it  awkwardly,  and  as  I  was  dubious  of  an  explosion,  I 
stopped  him,  saying,  "  Take  care,  John ;  give  it  to  me  ! 
Take  care  ! !  "  Pulling  a  cork ! — that  was  nothing ;  John 
could  do  that,  perhaps  had  done  it  too  often ;  but  John 
and  my  bowsman,  an  elderly  man,  now  were  good  members 
of  the  Norway  House  Mission,  and  showed  themselves  dur- 
ing the  time  they  were  with  me  to  be  consistent  Christians. 
What  made  the  drawing  of  this  cork  dangerous,  John 
wished  to  know  ?  His  curiosity  was  excited  ;  and  as  I 
proceeded  he  stood,  with  open  eyes  and  mouth,  looking 
over  ray  shoulder.  For,  as  much  as  I  laughed  during  the 
goose-chase,  when  I  observed  John,  I  felt  inclined  to  laugh 
a  little  more.  The  confined  beer-spirit  in  the  bottle  began 
to  hiss — a  thought  crossed  me,  when  away  went  the  cork 
with  a  pistol  report,  missing  John's  face  by  about  one  inch ; 
but  the  beer,  it  went  right  in.  Poor  John  was  as  frightened 
as  the  geese  were  a  few  minutes  before ;  blinded  and  roar- 
ing, he  attempted,  with  wide-spread  fingers,  to  stop  the 
current ;  and,  not  much  accustomed  to  handling  the  bottle, 
either  of  beer  or  else,  by  the  time  I  got  my  hand  on  its 
mouth,  the  contents  were  gone.  John  would  not  venture 
to  the  canoe,  where  the  remaining  bottles  were,  until  he 
saw  them  carefully  covered ;  and  ever  after  avoided  their 
corks  presented,  as  he  would  the  muzzle  of  a  loaded  rifle. 

As  I  have  said  before,  the  face  of  the  country  hereabouts 
is  hilly,  covered  with  marsh,  and  here  and  there  with  low 
evergreens.     This  is  the  dominon  of  the  reindeer. 

Here  begins  an  extensive  beaver  settlement.     It  contiu- 


1 


(I 


.  ^very  man 
"s  piace  are 

nvorat  this 

"lied  twenty 

banks  and 

ervice  to  the 

■  picking  up 

•     The  pro- 
condition. 

unch,  so  we 

^  f'n-ee  hot- 

Iiirsty  from 
•''t't  about 

eared  to  do 

■xplosion,  I 
it  to  me ! 

»ng;  John 
^iut  John 

i  members 

selves  dur- 

Christians. 

ous,  John 

and  as  I 

^>  iooking 

during  the 

'  to  laugh 

tie  began 

the  cork 

one  inch  ; 

'jghtened 

md  roar- 
stop  the 

e  bottle, 

i  on  its 

venture 

until  he 

ed  their 

■  rifle. 

eabouts 

ith  low 

contiD- 


UKV.    I'KTKK  .IAC0D!4. 


57 


i 


■X 


ues  up  this  river  tor  ul)uiit  sixty  inih.'S.  When  traveling 
with  a  row-boat,  the  nojso  frii^'htons  thc^  beavor,  and  they 
dive  under  water ;  but  as  we  had  a  iii^ht  carioi',  wo  saw 
them,  at  eveniri<^  and  at  day  break,  Roiuo;  to  and  rcturniiig 
tVom  their  work  on  sliore.  They  sloop  durin;^'  day,  and 
chop  or  f^naw  durinu;  ni<,dit.  They  cut  from  wands  up  to 
poles  four  inches  through,  and  from  one  to  two  fathoms 
Ions.  A  larue  beaver  will  carry  a  stick  I  would  not  like  to 
shoulder  for  two  or  three  hundred  yards  to  the  water,  and 
then  float  it  otf  to  whore  lie  wants  to  take  it.  The  kinds 
of  tree  used  are  willow  and  poplars  :  the  long  leaf  and  the 
round  loaf,  preferrin<;-  the  latter.  Tiie  Canada  beavers, 
where  the  poplar  is  larj^or,  lumber  on  a  larger  scale.  They 
cut  trees  over  a  foot  through  ;  but.  in  that  ease,  only  the 
limbs  are  used.  About  two  cords  of  wood  serve  Mr. 
Beaver  and  his  family  for  the  winter ;  but  it  is  closer  piled 
than  the  wood  1  have  s(!en  sold  t<-)  some  of  our  citizens  at 
tive  dollars  a  cord.  A  bea\'(,'r's  house  is  lar<jfe  enouufh  to 
allow  two  men  a  comfortable  sleeping  room,  and  is  very 
clean.  It  is  built  of  sticks,  stones,  and  mud,  and  is  well 
plastered  outside  and  in.  The  trowel  the  beaver  uses  in 
i)lastering:  is  his  tail.  At  the  table  it  is  (;onsidered  a  ijreat 
delicacy.  Their  beds  are  made  of  clups,  split  as  tine  as  the 
brush  of  a  wooden  broom,  and  ar<*  put  in  one  corner  and 
kept  clean  and  dry.  After  the  bark  is  stripped — the  only 
'part  the  beaver  uses  as  food — the  stick  is  carried  otf  a  di.s- 
tar  ■■  from  the  house.  Many  of  our  good  housewives  might 
be  iiothino;  the  worse  of  readino:  a  little  about  the  beaver. 

The  beaver,  in  large  rivers  and  lakes,  make  no  dams  : 
they  have  water  enough  without ;  but  in  small  creeks  they 
dam  up,  {ind  make  a  better  stop-water  than  is  done  by 
many  of  our  millers.  The  place  where  they  build  their 
dams  is  the  most  labor-saving  spot  in  the  valley,  and  where 
the  work  will  stand  best.  The  dam  fmishcd,  not  a  drop  of 
water  escapes.  This  country  abounds  with  beaver,  and  an 
Indian  will  kill  upward  of  three  hundred  in  a  season.  The 
fikin  of  the  beaver  is  not  worth  now  as  much  as  it  used  to 
be,  but  their  flesh  is  one  of  the  main  articles  of  food.  We 
shot  three  in  this  settlement ;  and,  as  every  voyager  knows, 
their  flesh  is  good  to  eat,  with  the  geese  and  the  beaver  we 
fared  well. 

A  few  evenings  after  ^re  left  the  "  Rock,"  Avhile  the  men 


58 


•"^'•RNvr.  oi-  I,,,/ 


^ere  on  boforo  mo  ••  trw.l.:„    »    , 

^hoforo  d...soribecI.  I  o  '.^^^  ^^^^^j'^^J^'  ^owin,.  the  canoes, 
that  wlucl,  [  ,00k  fo  b,.  u  b]  ck  fo,  r  ?  i'""'^  '"  ^^^  "ver 
etiv  ns  possible.  bopi„.  to  ^  ,  ,  ,L.     k''''  "P""  '^  ««q"i- 

;vho  had  boenl.  fishing     tJ.^k":"!^^  '^"^  to  boa  boa' 
His  mode  of  nshm^  is  ratlio^.n  •     "  \^'''^^  «shormnn 
current,  and  seating  himsnlf  on  b      I""''     '^'  ^^''^^^'^  '"^o  a 
coming  up  to  about  ]m  si  onlV        ""'  "P'''>'>t.  tbo  water 
t.ho  ],ttle  fishes  come     on.      1""''  ^''-  P^^^ientlv  waits  unti 
^•des  for  a  stone   n^^Ssdvor^'^^'"^' '"'^  black  sLly 
dmtely  seizes   them,  Jvo     her  "^^"'"•'^'  ^"'"^-     He  imm^^ 
P"w  tosses  them  ov.fk^  foT  T  ",T' '"'^  ^^^^^   his    eft 
His  left  paw  is  the  one       vays  ustdl'";,"^  ''  ^'^  «^-- 
P^\t  of  J„s  fishing.     It  is  feel"  I     ^^''  *''«  tossing  ashore 
Indians  say,  he  cStche    stuS    ?  "''''  "^^  «'>bt.     nl 

thf  Vr^^^^^  so  shoa  X  tr  ".  ?'^^^"'"^^  •"  «hoa! 
the  only  fish  I  know  of  Z  hf  ""'  ^'"'^  «tick  out  •  but 
ares  kers.  Thes;:in^l;.,^;"3 -J'-  habit  of  catihing 
sons  the  bear  makes  his  d.]k  ft'  u'""'  ^Pawning  sea- 
e^ght  A.  M.,  and  makinrdin  '  '''i'^'  breakfasting,  about 
about  four  P.  M.    "it^  tt'o^itt^'n  "^  ^^  '^- 

ber,  he  retires  to  h';  bead/"  j'"  ^t"^^^  '"^  ««£'„! 
dehcate  part  of  the  fish   tL?    'T^''  himself  on  the  mo  t 

got  over  them  ;ith  alf  speed  ^"itr  "f  P^^^''^^^'  that  is 
ai-e  from  a  quarter  of  a  mile  to  .,      ,  ^^''^^'^'^  «"  this  route' 

ifnow  what  a  portao-e  is      A  r.^T    ■    ^y  ^^"^devs  may  no^ 
^akes  from  desj:tnyL^^Z^^^^^^^ 
peninsula,  formed  by  the  bpnH  ?     '■^'''  ^''  the  neck  of  a 
a  lake,  and  the  cinfuits  vol     ''^  'I  ''^'^'•'  ^^  the  sweep  of 
waterfalls  and  rapids     ToTavft'-    ^^'"^  *°  "^'^^^  to  a^vl 
else  are  carried  on  our  sho .M      ""'  "'""^^  ^^"^  everytS 
»ot   required  to  carry  more  1?  ''''''  ''^^^^-     ^  '^^n "? 
fcety  pounds  weight^s^U   d  ,'"  p'e":^^  ^"'^  doub?ed' 
age  1  carried  my  two  -  nippp^  .»     ?,^^^-      ^^'er  every  port- 

may  be  had,   ,W,e,.  I  sThat'^tT.T'''"  °' ''^^'^^ 

■ '      "'  ""*  portages  are  crossed 


I;GV.    VKIKR   JACUOI!. 


59 


^  the  cftnoes, 
^  in  the  river 
/>'>'!  it  as  qui. 
•"  aniniftl  saw 
^  f^o  a  bear, 
't  fisherman, 
vades  into  a 
>t,  the  water 
J"  ^vaits  until 

'>ck,  sl)U(r£ry 

He  imme- 
itii   his  left 

•  f'le  sliore. 

'■'''"iJr  ashore 

"ir'jt.     The 

^^  in  shoal 

^o»t;   but 

^  catching 

lyninqf  sea^ 

'"g  about 

<^ne  meal, 

perve  him. 

nber  in  a 

ient  nuni- 
the  most 

pJiind  the 

'■equently 

'  that  is, 
"'s  route 
Crossing- 
tnay  not 
'  divides 
ck  of  a 
^eep  of 
>  avoid 
Tthing- 
fnan  is 
ubJed. 
^  port- 
le  toil 
"ossed 


generally  barefooted,  and  ilic  paths  are  none  of  the  smooth- 
est. We  are  forced  id  mi  hareluoted,  because  our  feet  arc 
so  frequently  wet,  that,  did  we  wear  boots,  we  would  soon 
get  so  galled  tluit  we  f)rol)ably  would  i(et  so  bad  as  to  bo 
unal)!e  to  proceed.  The  cl.Mn-sliells  on  the  beach  wound 
the  feet  more  than  anything  else  iloes.  At  Knee  Lake  the 
portages  are  nearly  all  over  ;  and  it  gave  us  great  pleasure 
to  see  its  blue  waters  stretching  out  before  us.  In  this 
lake  we  met  thirty  or  forty  of  tlu;  Red  River  boats,  going 
their  last  Irij)  this  season,  for  their  fall  goods,  brought  out 
by  the  Prince  liupert.  We  spoke;  those  we  passed  in  day- 
light ;  but,  as  we  pulled  night  and  day,  wv.  passed  many  at 
night.  There  is  pleasur*!  in  meeting  with  fellow  creatures  in 
the  wilderness,  even  to  those  who  have  passed  much  of 
their  lives  there  alone. 

At  O.vford  House,  Mr.  Robinson,  the  gentlem.)  i  in  charge, 
received  us  kindly,  and  offered  me  anything  I  wanted ;  but, 
as  I  was  well  supplied  already,  I  thanked  him,  and  accept- 
ed nothing. 

We  feared  head  winds  more  than  anything  else  ;  and 
when  weather  served,  or  the  sky  wore  a  threatening  ap- 
pearance, we  pulled  all  night:  always  next  day  we  ^elt 
wearied  and  stupid.  Thus  we  got  to  the  head  of  OjaOid 
Lake.  We  did  not  call  at  Jackson's  Bay  Mission,  foi  the 
sake  of  time ; — it  Avas  late  in  the  season,  and  we  were  go- 
ing home.  We  pulled  hard  during  the  remainder  of  the 
week,  that  we  might  reach  Norway  House  Mission  to  spend 
the  Sabbath  there.  Saturday  night  came,  and  we  expected 
to  have  got  to  the  mission  for  morning  service,  but  we  could 
not.  We  then  attempted  to  get  there  in  time  for  evening 
service,  but  the  Avinds  would  not  let  us  cross  the  lake ;  and 
although  for  the  greater  part  of  the  day  we  were  within 
sight  of  the  mission,  we  could  not  get  there  until  ten  o'clock 
P.  M.  Mrs.  Mason  was  in  bed,  and  not  A*!>^ing  to  disturb 
her,  I  went  up  to  my  own  old  habitation,  ..■>  vnding  empty, 
and,  kindling  a  fire,  lay  down  until  morning.  In  the  midst 
of  friends,  I  slept  alone.  I  felt  depressed.  There  was  a 
sadness — a  feeling  of  coming  evil  upon  me,  and  to  pass  the 
night  alone  in  my  old  house,  where  everything  spoke  of 
those  now  far,  far  from  me,  was  my  choice,  for  it  accorded 
with  mv  own  feelino-s. 

At  daylight,  the  class-leaders  came  to  welcome  me  ;  and 


60 


JOURNAL  OP  THE 


while  breakfast  was  cretti^r.       ^ 

meeting.     Mrs.  M    oSuf.  ^'  ""'  ^^^^  '  ^^^^  prayer. 
The  whole  of  Monday  1  30^?^'^^^^"^'°" 

P»-eparing  for  our  voyage  1   ri     w"^"^*'  ^^«  «Pent  in 

canoe  washing  linen,  £-'  "^  ^'"^^^  ^"^"'Peg-gu^^^j^^" 

^n  luesday,  ten  o'clock  7\   \r    .1 

our  canoe,  and  we  had  ^nv^      '    ^'"^  P''"P^«  assembled  at 

-th  Mrs    Mason   a^  frieS";""'"^'.  ^^^^-'  P-^^ng 

House,  which  is  in  sigj^t  of  tliP  J  •  P^'^^^^^ed  to  £rwa? 

gentleman  in  charged    He  w^.  " '"°?'.  ^"^  ^ined  with  t  e 

'^nd  beautiful;  and  as  we  Ind  i,n  /      ''^^^^''^oon  was  calm 
apprehensive  of  head  w ind.  1  .  i/'/ood  rest  and  we7e 
««nnsenextmorninc.wr",^;n  ;^P""?^'^    that  night     Tt 
tl^«  wa^«''  v.as  so  ^hl^l  "r£.''^'"^''^"d"tt,bu^^ 
^vade  a  distance.     The  beTchT.      ?"^.^^^tho"t  havin.  to 
l^n  was  about  two  hours  up  Jon  f  ^"'^'^'  '''^^'  -"d^le 
on  shore.   It  appeared  to  bTk  ^a  "  .^^T  ^^"  object  moving 
•appeared  to  make  gestures  tolT  '  a^?^  ^'  ^^^  "^ared  it,  i^t 
^^""cT.V,  but,  neverthele  s  t,i  1  n    ^^      '"'''  '"^^"''^d  '^"d 
fur?-*  suffering,  ..e  p.dl  d     „  ^  "o^  ^^^  fjanger  was  in  da  ' 
surprise  when  we  found  him  to  Z         ^'""-     ^"dge  of  our 
was  seated  on  his  hams'  and  wha?  '"  fr^*"^^"^  ^^^^^     He 
were  his  motions  in  raisnJ^ himself       ^'-"""^^^  ^""^  gestuSs 

shore  ns  the  shoal  water  wn!,M       "?'     ^^"^  ?«'  'is  close  in 

be.ich      Some  dead  brush!wo"iV    .™'"''  ""''  S"ined  Z 
bear,  hiding  the  bear  fr^m  1,7,1 ,7  r '""''"  -f"''"  ™d      e 
'■ore  ,ve  could  see  botUohn  S.l,  ?"  "'"  P"^'"""  off 
«overe.i  us,  and  advanced  to  va~d  "J"'     '^«  "o.v  di,- 

h™  fo.-  the  dead  brush.  rln'on^tLrK'*  J°h»  "»' ^eeig 
J'le  weanness  from  pullin-r  all  "f  w    '^f''  '"'^■•"•d  him 
wahout  breakfast.  and^Rac  io^fl^'/"''.  ''«''?  ^o  lon^ 
bear,  probably  destrnv»H  „  '''"'"°"  Produced  by  seein.,  ihl 
be;-ed  now  th^t  t     !\  ^^^^P-^^  of  ».ind.  Eim 
-'y.  and  ,ou  might^as  'v:r,^:refa''rrV^;ei""^£t 


V 

I 
t 
t 
t 
t 


I 


^^1 


i    ll 


REV.  PETER  JACOBS. 


61 


ood 


prayer. 


^as  spent  in 
-gumming 

'sembled  at 
^n>  parting- 
to  Korway 
■d  with  the 
,  and  gave 
^vas  calm 
and  Were 
'g-'it.     At 
ikfost,  but 
having  to 
'  and  the 
't  movino- 
^^'"ed  it,  it 
J'led  and 
*5  in  dan- 
:("■  of  our 
kr.     He 
gestures 
'  to  pull 
s  filied, 
-njoying 
^p-dogs 
sir  mis- 
ariness. 
lose  in 
ng  my 
'?d  the 
id  the 
on  off 
kv  dis- 
ieeing 
him. 
long 
r  the 
nem- 
•shot 
rohn 


'I 


was  in  danger,  and  we  strained  at  our  paddles  ;  but  as  the 
bear  was  a  very  large  one,  and  we  had  no  other  fire-arms 
than  the  gun  John  had,  we  would  have  been  but  poor  help 
to  John  in  the  hug  of  a  wounded  bear.  The  bear  was  at 
the  other  side  of  the  dry  brush  ^n  the  beach.  John  heard 
the  dry  branches  cracking  before  the  brute,  and  dodged 
into  a  hollow,  under  a  thick  bush.  The  bear  passed  the  dry 
brush,  and  was  coursing  along  the  sand ;  but  as  he  passed 
by  where  John  lay,  bang  went  the  gun.  The  bear  was 
struck.  We  saw  him  leap  through  the  smoke  on  to  the 
very  spot  where  we  saw  John  last.  We  held  our  breath ; 
but,  instead  of  the  cry  of  agony  we  expected,  bang  went 
the  gun  again  !  John  is  not  yet  caught !  Our  canoe  rush- 
ed througl'  the  water.  We  might  yet  be  in  time.  But  my 
paddle  fell  from  my  hand  as  I  saw  John  pop  head  and  shoul- 
ders above  a  bush,  and  with  a  shout  point  to  the  side  of  the 
log  he  stood  upon.  "There  he  lies — dead  enough  ! "  We 
were  indeed  thankful  to  the  Preserver.  The  man  who  was 
somewhat  scared  at  a  corked  bottle  of  ginger-beer  could 
meet  alone,  with  duck-shot  only,  a  large,  old  bear,  and  kill 
him  too. 

Here  I  learned  for  the  first  time  how  to  preserve  meat 
without  salt  for  a  month,  and  have  it  then  good  and  fresh 
as  when  killed.  The  men  having  to  return  to  Norway 
House,  their  home,  dug  a  hole  in  the  swamp,  about  two  and 
a  half  feet  deep,  put  in  the  bottom  a  few  dry  boughs,  then, 
putting  in  the  bear's  skin  and  about  half  the  meat,  covered 
all  up.  When  they  returned,  they  would  take  it  home  with 
them.  We  took  about  half  the  bear  along  with  us,  all  the 
canoe  would  carry. 

We  were  now  hi  Lake  Winnipeg,  None  of  us  will  ever 
forget  it.  Again  and  again  were  we  wind-bound  at  its 
many  points,  and  several  times  were  Ave  nearly  swamped. 
My  department  of  the  labor  was  bailing ;  this  I  performed 
with  a  small  kettle.  No  accident  had  ever  occurred  to  me 
on  the  water ;  and  apprehensive  of  delay  permitting  the 
frost  from  the  north  to  overtake  us,  we  were,  perhaps,  too 
venturesome. 

During  the  6th  and  7th  of  September  we  were  wind- 
bound.  On  the  8tli,  the  wind  abated,  and  we  again  put  out 
to  the  lake.  The  waves  were  high ;  but  as  the  wind  had 
gone  down,  we  thought  they  also  would   fall.      It  was 


62 


JOURNAL  OF  THE 


i\ 


V  V 


ihorning:  we  had  not  as  yet  taken  breakfast,  and  were 
about  an  hour  and  a  half  from  our  encampment,  doublini?  a 
point,  when  a  wave  struck  us  and  half  filled  the  canoe. 
"We  ran  into  the  bay,  bailed  out,  and  again  turned  to  the 
lake.  A  point  lay  about  a  mile  and  a  half  ahejid.  Round 
this  point  and  the  wind  would  be  almost  fair.  On  we 
pulled,  wet  and  cold.  How  uncertain  is  the  future !  We 
were  nearly  two  miles  from  shore  when  a  wave  struck  us, 
and  over  we  went.  When  I  rose  to  the  surface,  I  found 
the  canoe  bottom  up,  and  John  astride  on  its  stem.  I  struck 
for  the  stern,  and  grasping  it  in  my  arms  hung  on.  The 
old  man,  my  bowsman,  hung  on  somewhere  about  the  mid- 
ships. He  had  the  worst  hold  of  us  three,  and  from  his 
being  more  frequently  under  the  waves  than  John  or  I,  he 
would  be  the  first  to  give  out.  I  said  to  John,  "  We  die 
now."  "  Yes,"  John  replied,  "  we  certainly  die  now."  I 
advised  the  men  not  to  attempt  swimming  to  shore,  as  the 
water  was  so  cold  they  would  get  faint  and  drown,  but  to 
hold  on  to  the  canoe,  and  we  would  drift  ashore  some  time. 
They  promised  to  do  so. 

I  now  saw  that  the  bowsman  was  getting  exhausted :  his 
efforts  to  resist  and  rise  with  the  heave  of  the  wave  ap- 
peared to  be  more  and  more  feeble.  I  asked  him  if  he 
were  prepared  to  meet  his  God  ?  He  said :  "  I  have 
prayed  to  him  long,  long  ago."  He  was  ready  to  die. 
Both  the  men  were  good  Christians,  members  of  the  Nor- 
way House  Mission.  The  old  ra'\n's  eyes  were  closing, 
when  John  reached  forward  his  hand,  and  taking  him  by 
the  hair,  at  the  risk  of  loosing  his  own  hold,  placed  the  old 
man's  chin  upon  his  knee,  and  kept  it  there,  thus  keeping 
his  mouth  out  of  the  water.  We  thought  that  the  old 
man  was  dead  ;  but  John,  a  hero,  would  not  let  his  head 
drop,  determined,  if  we  should  get  to  the  shore,  to  bury  his 
companion  on  the  beach. 

I  now  felt  getting  weak,  and  that  all  hope  was  over.  I 
committed  my  soul  and  my  family  to  God.  I  told  John 
that  I  felt  I  was  drowning,  and  that  he  must,  if  he  could, 
save  his  own  li^e.  He  replied,  that  he  had  no  wish  to  live . 
if  we  Avere  dro.vned  that  he  would  drown  too.  The  pooi 
fellow's  heart  was  like  to  burst,  not  for  himself,  but  foi 
the  old  man  and  me.  When  I  thought  of  home,  and  the 
wants  of  the  work,  I  did  wish  to  live.    If  my  work  was 


^ 


HEV.    I'ETKli   JACOBS. 


63 


his 


Ir.  I 
John 
ould, 
live . 
J  pool 
ut  f  01 
d  the 
was 


done,  I  would  die  ;  if  not,  all  liie  water  in  the  lake  could  not 
drown  me.  God's  will  be  done !  I  was  perfectly  resigned. 
1  prayed ;  and  as  I  prayed,  suddenly  hope  of  being  saved, 
hitherto  lost,  filled  my  mind,  I  felt  an  irresistible  impres- 
sion that  we  would  not  drown,  that  we  would  all  be  saved. 
Nothing  that  I  saw  had  occurred  to  cause  this,  but  I  felt 
assured  of  its  truth.  The  wind  blew,  the  waves  heaved,  and 
we,  like  floating  leaves,  were  tossed  about  as  tlie  storm 
willed.  It  was  He  who  rules  the  winds,  the  waves,  and  the 
hearts  and  strength  of  men — from  him  did  we  get  our  hope 
and  our  strength.  1  felt  so  much  revived  that  I  began  to 
paddle  witli  my  arm  ;  imd  just  as  the  waves  threw  a 
paddle  almost  into  John's  hand,  the  bowsman's  eyes 
opened.  I  now  felt  merry ;  not  that  I  could  laugh,  but 
vel•^^  very  happy — thankfulness  to  God  being  the  uppermost 
feeliiio'. 

We  ncared  the  shore,  antl  sevenil  times  1  let  ray  feet 
drop  to  sound  ;  but  no  bottom.  Still  we  neared  the  shore, 
and  again  and  again  did  1  sound,  and  at  last  found  the 
bottom,  but  a  few  yards  fi-om  the  beach. 

The  old  man  was  our  first  care — he  could  not  walk  up- 
light.  Jolui  and  1  returned  to  save  the  Ciuioe,  and,  on 
turning  it  up,  found  of  all  we  had  only  my  b<.'dding.  God 
was  indeed  good  to  us  in  this ;  for  we  ^\■ould  have  suffered 
much  from  cold  during  the  night  had  the  bedding  not  been 
restored  to  us.  We  knelt  down  on  the  beach  ar.d  returned 
Him  thanks.  We  now  felt  ourselves  so  much  exhausted 
that  we  had  to  lay  down  on  the  beach,  wet  and  cold  as  we 
were,  and  rest. 

We  picked  up  a  few  things  that  carat;  ashore,  among 
others  a  bag  of  biscuit,  and  about  four  pounds  of  pemmican. 
Our  misfortune  lost  to  me  my  double-barreled  gun,  all  my 
clothing,  money,  and  the  goods  I  had  to  pay  my  voyageis, 
amounting  to  over  £80  sterling. 

We  continued  our  voyage.  The  allowance  of  the  three 
men  were  about  two  bites  of  pemmican  per  day,  and  a  little 
mush,  which  had  once  been  biscuit ;  but  I  could  eat  noth- 
ing :  my  losses,  and  the  shock  I  received  from  our  danger, 
destroved  all  sensation  of  hunii'er. 

In  three  days  Ave  arrived  at  Fort  Alexander.  The  men 
did  ample  justice  to  whatever  was  set  before  them ;  and, 
1o  confess    the  truth,  the   sympathy  of  kind  friends,  and 

5 


64 


JOURNAL    OF    THE 


plenty,  brought  back  my  own  appetite  with  an  edge  I  found 
difficulty  in  turning. 

We  were  kindly  received  by  Mr.  Isbister,  the  person  in 
charge.  I  cannot  say  too  much  of  the  kindness  of  Mrs.  W. 
Sinclair.  Mr.  W.  Sinclf  Ir  had  a  good  stock,  and  his  benev- 
olent lady  pressed  me  to  take,  without  price,  all  that  I 
needed  for  the  remainder  of  my  journey.  I  had  often 
heard  of  her  kindness,  but  never  proved  it  until  now.  I 
accepted  two  shirts,  oae  neckerchief,  and  a  few  other 
things,  and  had  to  refiso  Ler  many,  many  offers,  as  I  could 
not  conscientiously  tai?  a  ijat  I  really  did  not  want. 

Here  I  paid  to  John  and  the  bowsman  their  losses  caused 
by  the  upsetting  of  the  canoe,  and,  after  prayer,  we  parted. 
I  might  here  say,  that  we  had  daily  prayer  through  all 
the  journey,  and  with  the  families  of  the  various  forts  we 
called  at.  I  felt  soiTy  to  part  with  the  men  who  had 
served  me  so  faithfully,  and  so  long.  Here  we  parted; 
they  to  their  homes,  and  me  to  my  home.  Home,  though 
it  is  a  bark  wigwam,  is  a  place  to  love ! 


t 


found 


son  in 

[rs.W. 
benev- 
that  I 
.  often 
ow.  I 
other 
I  could 

caused 
parted, 
ugh  all 
"orts  we 
ho  had 
parted ; 
,  though 


FORT  ALEXANDER. 


1  SHALL  here  write  something'  more,  in  addition  to  what  I 
said  before  of  Fort  Alexander,  in  the  thirty -seventh  page  of 
this  Journal.  VViiiio  I  was  stationed  here  in  the  year  1840, 
to  give  myself  recreation  after  my  studies,  I  used  to  go  out 
with  my  gun,  and  shoot  ducks,  and  geese,  and  rabbits,  and 
pheasants.  After  Imnting  for  an  hour  or  two,  I  used  to 
bring  in,  at  one  time,  two  or  three  rabbits,  and,  at  ;tnother 
time,  two  or  three  pheasants,  wliich  always  kept  me  and 
my  family  in  the  meat  way  for  the  following  day. 

On  one  occasion,  I  went  out,  as  usual,  and  shot  a  rabbit 
on  the  ground,  and  while  loading  my  gun,  without  chang- 
ing ray  place,  I  saw  another  rabbit,  and  shot  it  without 
moving  a  step.  When  I  looked  around  me  after  this,  I  saw 
rabbits  sitting  all  around ;  1  fired  at  the  nearest,  and  kept 
loading  and  firinij  until  I  killed  ten  rabbits.  All  these  I 
shot  without  going  away  more  than  twenty  feet  from  the 
place  where  I  stood  first.  This  is  the  first  time  that  I  saw 
so  many  rabbits  sit  so  quietly,  notwithstanding  the  report  of 
the  gun.  It  is  very  true,  these  rabbits  were  young  and 
foolish.  This  beats  Canada  for  shooting.  I  never  had  such 
luck  in  my  life  before. 

On  another  occasion,  when  spring  came,  I  went  out  on  a 
wild  goose  hunting  excursion,  with  a  lUfin  whom  I  employed 
to  be  cook  for  me.  We  went  to  Big  Stone  Point,  on  the 
eastern  shore  of  Lake  Winnipeg,  which  is  between  this  and  the 
mouth  of  lied  River.  When  we  arrived  there,  we  had  first 
to  make  preparations  for  a  hearty  meal,  before  proceeding 
to  our  more  important  operations  of  hunting.  When  the 
cook  had  laid  out  our  portions  of  food  on  a  beautiful  beacli, 
and  while  wo  were  busy  eating,  tny  man,  with  his  mouth 
fi!ill  of  meat,  cried  out,  or  rather  tried  to  cry  out,  "  Here 
/jome  the  geese  !''  By  this  time  I  saw  something  move  in 
the  air,  over  mv  left  shoulder.     Knowing  that  this  was  the 


00 


JOLKNAI.    OK    TIIK 


!? 


I 


i 


motion  of  tlio  geese's  winces,  I  snatclied  up  my  gun  in  |^eat 
liasle,  whicii  \\iis  only  a  i" ot  or  two  from  me,  took  aim,  and 
fired  in  the  direction  of  tiie  geese,  wlietlier  to  hit  or  to  miss. 
Fortunately  enough,  I  broke  one  of  the  wings  of  a  goose, 
which  made  it  come  down  at  a  distance  on  the  smooth  ice ; 
and,  without  knowing  what  I  was  about,  1  threw  down  my 
gun,  two  or  three  feet  from  me,  and  v;m  with  full  speed  for 
my  wounded  goose  on  thi'  ice.  The  goose,  liaving  its  wing 
broken,  but  still  quite  soi'ud  as  to  its  legs,  ran  a\v;iy,  urA 
made  good  use  of  its  legs,  and  T  after  it,  1*."eathle:s.  Af 
last  I  overtook  it  and  tried  to  kick  i*^s  head,  while  the  goose 
was  running  at  full  speed;  but  from  too  great  excitement, 
and  from  not  taking  sufficient  care,  as  t!ie  ice  was  smooth, 
T  fell  down.  1  rose  up  as  nui.kly  as  I  could,  and  ran  r.nd 
caught  up  my  goose  again.  T  succeeded  in  breaking  its 
neck  this  time.  When  I  retunrd  to  the  cook,  1  told  him 
tliat  I  had  a  fine  chas(.'  and  fine  fun.  "  Yes,"  ^aid  he,  "  you 
had  fun,  bn+  there  was  no  fun  for  me."  I  said,  Why  ? 
"  Why,"  sail  the  man,  ''  svlien  you  jumped  up  from  the 
sand  while  yon  svesv  eating,  as  it  were  out  of  your  senses, 
you  kicked  th<-  ■  -^i  plat-:;  of  meat  on  my  lap,  and  the  liot 
tea  on  my  thigh.  I  think  the  skin  is  coming  off."  "O," 
said  I,  "you  will  soon  be  well  again."  I  was  \<'o  much 
filled  with  joy  on  killing  the  first  goose  to  sympathize  with 
the  man  in  his  sufferings ;  however,  not  much  of  his  skin 
came  oil'. 

It  is  ciistomary,  in  these  cold  regions,  in  voyages  and 
hunting  excursions,  to  have  hot  tea  with  the  dinner.  It  is 
]>articularly  refresning,  t,\fter  walking  for  a  long  time. 
Hence  the  Canadian,  or  half  breed  voyagcu)\  trapper,  or 
iiunter,  in  the  Hudson's  Lay  Territory,  must  always  have 
his  tea  with  the  dinner.  After  dinner  we  moved  to  the  neck 
of  the  peninsula,  near  whero  we  were,  and  remained  there 
two  days.  My  luck  ir^  chooiing  was  fifteen  gray  geese  and 
a  white  one,  called  in  this  country  a  xoavy.  This  wavy  is  a 
pretty  bird,  white  as  snow,  except  at  the  ends  of  the  wings, 
which  are  black,  and  at  the  beak,  which  is  red.  It  is  very 
much  like  the  domestic  goose,  but  its  skin  is  black  instead 
of  being  white.  Wavies  are  very  numerous  in  this  part  of 
the  country  in  spring  and  fall.  I  shot  all  the  sixteen  geese 
that  I  killed,  on  the  wing.  This  was  considered  good  luck 
for  one   who   was   a   "greendiorn"  from    Canada.      It   is> 


•f 


A' 


vfy 


IlKV.    I'KTini   JACOBS. 


67 


vly 


geese 


beautiful  sport  to  shoot  ^eese  flying  over  one's  liead,  and  it 
is  beautiful  to  see  them  as  thev  full  to  the  ffrouiul.  Mv  cook 
shot  four;  so  we  had  twenty  altogether.  These  geese  were 
so  large  and  fat  that  we  could  uot  take  tlieni  home  with  us; 
we  therefore  went  home  and  sent  for  them  the  next  day,  wiien 
they  were  brought  in  a  dog-sleigli. 

I  would,  just  here,  also  say,  that  Fort  Alexander  is  a 
great  [>laee  for  white  fish  ;  thousands  of  them  are  caught  by 
means  of  gill-nets,  in  the  autumn,  for  the  winter  consump- 
tion of  the  inhabitants. 

Sejitemher  12. — At  noon  to-day,  all  our  things  being  pack- 
ed in  our  canoe,  myself  and  men  went  in.  My  steersman  was 
John  Sinclair,  the  son  of  W.  Sinclair,  Esq.,  a  young  lad 
about  eighteen  years  of  age.  I  had  another  young  man  of 
about  the  same  age  from  the  fort.  So  I.  had  very  young 
men  to  take  me  on  to  Lac  la  Pluie,  which  was  quite  a  dis- 
tant post.  The  part  of  the  route  between  Fort  Alexander 
and  Lac  la  Pluie  is  the  most  difficult  and  dangerous  in  my 
voyage,  as  there  are  many  falls,  rapids,  and  whirlpools  in  the 
way  :  we  had,  therefore,  to  look  forward  to  many  daugers. 
Master  .fohn  did  not  go  with  me  to  make  a  voyager's  w^ages, 
but  only  to  accommodate  me,  there  being  no  Indians  about 
the  fort,  whom  I  might  have  employed.  We  soon  arrived 
at  the  Manito  Rapids,  where  we  had  to  use  a  long  cod-line 
to  pull  up  our  canoe,  and  got  over  without  much  difliculty. 
While  coasting  up  the  river,  I  saw  two  black  ducks,  or 
stalk-clucks,  (as  they  are  called  'in  Hudson's  Bay,)  flying 
by  us.  I  immediately  took  up  Master  Sinclair's  double- 
barreled  gun,  and  shot  the  ducks,  one  after  another,  with  it. 
"  You  are  a  good  marksuian,"  said  Master  Sinclair.  "  Yes," 
said  I,  "  I  do  very  well,  especially  when  I  am  hungry,  and 
when  I  depend  on  the  aim  I  make  for  my  dinner." 

In  a  short  time  we  arrived  at  the  first  portage,  which  is 
called  by  the  Indians,  Ushkaunduhgah-onegum,  (Ever- 
green Portage,)  and  is  about  half  a  mile  in  length.  About 
one  hundred  and  fifty  yards  below  the  landing  of  this  port- 
age is  a  point  that  juts  out  into  a  very  strong  current. 
This  we  tried  to  stem  up  without  a  rope,  by  means  of  our 
paddles,  but  were  forced  back  two  or  three  times  by  the 
waves  and  strong  current.  The  last  time  we  tried,  our 
canoe  was  half  filled  with  water.  This  compelled  us  to  bail 
out  the  water  and  have  recourse  to  our  cod-line  and  pull  up. 


m 


.loriiNAL    OK    riiK 


A 


I'.'i  <  i ' 


1 11  ;,,^ 


If  our  c-anoo  had  upset  in  this  tremeiKlous  current,  it  is  not 
likely  wo  should  Lave  ever  got  out  of  the  water.  At  the 
up))or  end  uf  this  portage  wo  cooked  and  ate  our  dinner. 
While  we  were  eating,  an  Indian  brought  us  a  fat,  delicious 
sturgeon,  for  which  I  paid  him  well.  It  lasted  us  necU'ly  all 
the  next  thiy.  The  great  rapid  here  is  a  noted  sturgeon 
fishery,  where  many  Indians  come  and  fish  in  the  spring  and 
tall,  and  catch  many  sturgeon ;  indeed,  I  may  say,  this  fish 
forms  part  of  their  living.  After  dinner  \Ve  went  on,  and 
had  to  usi;  our  cod-line  several  times  to  pull  up  against 
I'apids.  We  encamped,  late  in  the  evening,  at  Silver  Falls, 
where  are  two  little  portages,  which  we  made  in  an  hour 
and  a  half,  that  is,  got  over  them. 

The  Silver  Falls  is  one  of  the  grandest  falls  in  the  Winni- 
peg River.  From  a  distance,  they  present  a  beautiful 
white  appearance,  caused  by  tlie  spray,  from  which  they 
obtained  the  name  of  Silver  Falls.  The  river  where  the 
falls  are  is  more  than  a  (quarter  of  a  mile  wide.  So  whatever 
goes  down  these  falls  alive,  goes  to  the  bottom  dead  enough. 

In  the  year  1847,  I  and  my  crew  in  one  canoe,  coming 
down  this  river,  nearly  perished  by  being  drawn  down  the 
falls.  I  was  then  in  charge  of  two  canoes,  taking  Canada 
Hour  to  Red  River,  for  the  troops  wlio  were  stationed 
at  the  Red  River  settlement.  Each  canoe  had  twenty-six 
bags  of  llou)',  that  is,  thirteen  barrels.  1  had  six  vo^^agers 
in  each  canoe.  In  coming  down  the  river  toward  the  land- 
ing of  the  portage,  my  steersman,  Sebe,  (River,)  very  foolishly 
and  carelessly  steered  the  canoe,  so  that  we  went  too  far  out, 
and  were  drawn  quickly  down  by  the  strong  current.  On  per- 
ceiving their  danger,  the  men  began  to  pull  with  great  force, 
in  order  to  reach  the  landing,  and  thus  save  themselves  from 
being  drawn  over  the  precipice  of  the  falls.  It  was  a  struggle, 
a  struggle  for  life!  Ah!  how  imminent  our  danger  was. 
Were  we  about  to  be  ingulfed  in  the  foaming  deep  ?  As 
our  canoe  was  heavily  laden,  it  refused  to  obey  us,  (so  to 
speak,)  but  was  inclined  to  go  over  the  precipice.  An  extra 
paddle  being  by  my  side,  1  picked  it  up  and  assisted  the 
men.  We  gained  inch  by  inch.  All  this  time  the  landing 
was  only  about  fifteen  feet  from  us,  only  we  were  fifteen  feet 
too  low  down.  The  men  in  the  other  canoe,  in  the  mean- 
time, were  looking  at  us,  anxious  on  our  account,  but  could 
not  render  us  assistance,  as  they  had  to  take  care  of  their 


vfy 


KRV.    IMiTEK   JACOBS. 


60 


)n,  and 

agaitist 


own  canoe.  They  could  only  cry  out,  "  Pull,  pull,  pull !" 
At  last  wo  reacheu  the  desired  shore,  and  O,  how  glad  our 
hearts  were  when  we  found  ourselves  once  more  safe  on  land. 
I  looked  at  my  men ;  their  faces  wore  as  pale  as  death. 
The  other  crew,  seeing  us  now  safe,  began  to  laugh  at  us, 
and  to  say,  "Your  faces  are  as  white  as  a  sheet;  that  will 
learn  you  to  bo  a  little  more  careful  next  time,  when  you 
come  down  to  the  lantling."  Wo  expected  this,  for  it  is 
the  nature  of  the  Indian  to  laugh  heartily  when  the  greatest 
danger  is  over.  My  men  tried  to  laugh,  but  they  could  not 
make  it  out ;  they  were  too  much  frightened.  It  was  half 
an  hour  before  I  could  myself  get  over  the  shock  I  had 
sustained,  and  be  free  from  my  nervous  feeling.  Now  if  we 
had  had  a  distance  of  ten  feet  more  to  go,  when  we  were 
pulling  away  to  reach  the  landing,  our  canoe  would  have 
gone  down  and  have  been  crushed  to  atoms,  and  we  would 
liavo  never  trodden  dry  land  alive.  I  was  thankful  to 
Ahnighty  God  that  we  had  escaped  such  great  danger. 
After  this,  my  men  took  care  not  to  get  into  such  a  scrape 
again  on  the  voyage. 

This  circumstance  reminds  me  of  another  that  occurred  in 
the  same  voyage,  at  Iron  wood  Point,  Lake  Winnipeg.  I 
shall  relate  it,  in  order  to  show  what  dangers  and  difficulties 
are  sometimes  met  with  in  these  remote  regions  by  travelers, 
and  what  care  ought  therefore  to  be  taken.  In  distant  mis- 
sionary fields  in  other  countries,  the  embassadors  of  the  cross 
have  peculiar  dangers  to  meet  with.  Some  labor  in  coun- 
tries where  cannibalism  exists ;  others  are  exposed  to  priva- 
tions and  sufferings  in  the  midst  of  enemies.  Here  the  mis- 
sionary, in  his  voyages,  has  often  his  "  perils  of  waters."  It 
must  be  remembered,  I  had  the  same  voyagers.  Ironwood 
Point  is  between  the  mouth  of  Winnipeg  River  and  Red 
River.  When  we  arrived  at  the  Point,  we  met  an  Indian 
in  his  canoe,  who  told  us  that  Sioux  Indians  were  about  in 
the  woods  lurking.  This  was  the  same  story  that  I  had  heard 
twice  during  the  day.  I  did  not  put  any  reliance  upon  it, 
but  my  men  felt  rather  afraid.  We  then  entered  a  little 
bay,  and  after  kindling  a  fire  and  cooking,  we  took  our  sup- 
per. After  this  we  began  to  think  of  what  we  were  told 
about  Sioux  being  near,  and  felt  many  misgivings.  Soon 
we  thought  we  heard  near  us  little  sticks  breaking,  and  the 
leaves  of  trees  rustling,  as  if  persons  were  moving  about. 


:4g 


70 


JOL'HNVL    Ol     TUK 


li     >. 


i! 


■ 


1 


This  coiilirniftd  ouv  ft!ar.s.  Wt;  now  thought  tlio  enoniy  w«.'re 
Tic.'tr.  Jiistoad  of  going*  to  sloop  horo,  1  advisod  my  men  to 
go  out  in  the  canoos,  and  to  keep  at  a  distance  of  twonty 
yards  fmiu  tho  beach  ;  at  the  sanio  time  I  told  tlioin  to  koop 
lh((  oaiiocs  tixfid  by  moans  of  stones  used  as  anchors.  I  got 
my  double-barreled  gun  in  good  order,  well  load(;d.  We  all 
agr-ed  that  each  person  in  the  crew  should  koei)  watch  half 
an  hour  during  tlw*  whole  niijht.  I  then  told  a  younjx  man 
to  keep  watch  while  the  rest  slept.  The  other  order  that 
was  given  for  the  night  was,  to  shoot  .anything  that  might 
appear  on  tho  water,  whether  it  was  a  dog  or  gull.  This 
precaution  was  considered  necessary,  for  Indians  who  have 
evil  intentions  of  murdering  and  robbing  others,  generally 
put  over  themselves  skins  of  animals,  such  as  those  of  dogs, 
wolves,  and  foxes,  and  approacli  their  victims  and  thus  de- 
ceive them.  I  lianded  over  ray  double-barreled  gun,  well 
loaded,  to  the  young  man,  who  was  thus  prepared  for  good 
action  in  self-defense.  My  other  men  lay  down,  and  soon 
fell  into  a  sound  sleep,  being  greatly  fatigued  by  the  long 
voyage  of  the  day.  \  myself  lay  for  some  time,  thinking 
what  we  would  do  if  a  large  number  of  armed  Indians  reallv 
came  and  attacked  us.  [n  about  fifteen  minutes  I  threw 
ofi'  my  blanket  fi'om  my  face,  and  rose  up  to  see  if  the  guard 
was  up.  The  darkness  of  the  night  prevented  me  from  see- 
ing him,  so  I  crawled  up  to  where  he  was,  and  found  him 
sound  asleep,  snoring  away,  and  stretched  upon  a  flour-bag. 
I  said  to  him  in  a  loud  tone,  "  You  arc  a  fine  fellow  to  be 
guard;  where  is  my  gun?"  "Here  it  is,"  said  he,  taking 
up  my  gun  from  his  side,  and  jumping  on  his  two  foot;  "  1 
will  be  more  faithful  next  time  in  keeping  guard."  Hearing 
this  good  promise,  I  left  him  and  went  back  to  my  bed. 
About  fifteen  minutes  after,  I  i-ose  up  to  see  if  the  half  hour 
was  up.  The  time  had  just  expired.  When  I  liarl  gone  up 
to  my  man,  to  my  surprise  he  was  agaui  sound  asleep  on  his 
Hour-bag.  "Ah,  you  are  a  fine  guard,  you  lazy  fellow,"  said 
I ;  "  now  go  and  take  your  sleep."  This  sleepy  guard  was 
the  younger  son  of  a  chief  named  Wahsejeese,  of  the  Wliite 
Dog.  I  took  ray  gun,  and  gave  it  next  to  8ebe,  a  smart 
but  wild  young  Indian,  from  Kat  I'ortago.  Smiling,  and 
trying  the  locks  of  the  gun,  he  said,  "  If  the  enemy  come,  I 
will  fix  them."  I  went  back  to  my  bed,  but  somehow  or 
other  I  did  not  sleep  for  about  a  (piarter  of  an  hour.     Then, 


I    i^  -^ 


UKV.    J'EiKU    JACOU.S. 


71 


as  betore,  1  tlnow  away  my  ))liiiikc'l  to  see  if  my  jLTiiard  \va.> 
up.  llo  was  ii|).  \  now  l.iy  '  nvn  willi  conHidera))!!'  ronfi- 
'lonc'n  to  liav(!  a  good  sleep,  an.,  did  a(.'tually  sleep  lor  a  tlnv 
minutes.  When  I  awoke  and  looked  for  the  guard,  I  saw 
ho  was  not  up.  He  also  was  Ktrtitelied  upon  a  lljur-bag.  I 
said  to  him,  "  Wiiy,  you  sleep  too  .■"  "Well,!  believe  1 
was  ashiej);  but  my  eyes  wore  open;  that  is,  J  meant  to 
keep  them  open  ;  again,  if  my  eyes  wero  shut,  my  ears  were 
open,  for  I  could  hear  the  noise  of  the  rippling  of  the  water 
by  the  side  of  the  canoe,"  "  But  that  is  not  the  way  to 
keep  good  wateh,''  replied  I ;  "  you  should  have  been  on 
your  feet,  and  looked  around."  Taking  up  the  gun,  I  gave 
it  to  my  best  man,  named  "  Mulimaungegaud,"  (Big  Legs,) 
from  Kat  IVirtage.  Ou  receiving  the  gun  and  trying  the 
locks,  he  s;iid,  that  it  would  not  be  good  for  the  enemy  to 
come.  This  man  being  old,  and  having  a  great  deal  of  ex- 
perience, I  went  to  bed  with  great  eontid(;nce,  and  did  not 
awake  till  daylight.  The  consequence  of  this  was,  there  were 
no  lurthor  elianiros  of  the  ffuard.  Two  or  three  hours  had 
passed  by  since  J  lay  down  the  last  time  to  sleep,  I  asked 
Big  Legs  if  he  was  awake  all  the  time.  ]I(!  said  he  believed 
he  slept  very  little.  When  \  asked  the  others  if  they  awoke 
during  the  night  and  saw  if  the  last  guard  was  up,  they  said 
they  did  not  see  him  up.  (Jonsequently  lie  must  have  had 
as  good  a  sleep  as  any  of  us. 

At  sunrise  we  went  ashore,  and  went  to  the  place  where 
we  supposed  the  Indians  lay  in  wait.  We  knew,  from  the 
dryness  of  a  certain  part  of  the  ground,  that  two  or  three 
[ndians  must  have  lain  there  during  the  night,  because  all 
the  ground  around  was  wet  from  the  dew.  I  do  not  believe 
the  Sioux  were  there,  althouo;!!  mv  men  thought  so.  I 
rather  think  they  were  the  very. Indians  we  met  the  day 
befoi'<>,  who  lay  there,  waiting  till  we  should  be  all  asleep,  to 
steal  a  tlour-bag  or  so  from  us.  A  lloui'-bag  is  thought  by 
an  Indian  a  thing  worth  stealing.  My  little  army  of 
]<rivate  soldiers,  being  twelve  in  number,  and  I  being  the 
only  oflicer,  I  did  not  force  the  martial  law  upon  the  unfaith- 
ful guards,  so  they  were  left  unpunished. 

September  13. — At  sunrise  we  left  the  Silver  I'^.-Jls  Port- 
age, and  in  an  hour  and  a  half  arrived  at  the  White  Clay 
Portage,  which  is  a  quarter  of  a  mile  in  length.  We  soon 
made  this,  and  after  pulling  away  hard  against  a  head  cur- 


72 


.1(1!  i:.\Ai.   or   nil: 


r 


■I 


'•i 


H 


..  f 


r(!iil,  \vn  ariivoil  ;il  iiiiif  lu'lock  jit  u  port.'iov  a  ([n.'irlt'r  <  l'  n 
inil<'  lonn-.  lliTii  \v(^  Itrt'akfastcd.  'I'lic  falln  arci  of  i'(>ii>ii  ler- 
able  liciuflit.  Snmn  yoars  acfo,  ont!  of  the  boats  of  W.  Sii. 
olair,  Ksij.,  was  oarriol  down  tln^  falls  wliilo  a  man  was  in  it. 
Mr.  SiiH'lair  was  tlii.-ii  ,n"oiii,U'  down  to  York  l'"a('lorv  with  his 
l)acks  of  furs.  As  sooii  as  the  hoat  went  down  it  was  hrokdii 
in  tw(»,  anil  thcso  two  j)arts  wfru  in  a  short  tiiiu!  hrokcii  to 
])iecus.  Strantru  to  suy,  tin!  man  in  lliu  boat,  alter  being" 
thrown  about  below  bv  the  Itoilino-  waters  and  daimcrous 
whirl|)ools,  mad(^  lnsesea|ie.  It  is  said  that  this  jxtor  Indian 
now  never  looks  at  thes(!  falls  when  he  passes  here  without 
.shuddeiinij;  iit  the  sight  of  them. 

After  breakfast  wo  soon  reached  the  lAjrtajn'o  de  lionnet, 
as  it  ^vas  near.  This  is  the  porta^'e  wheie  is  a  s|)ot  of  ground 
whioh  is  favorable  for  agrieultural  |>urposes,  as  1  s;)id  in  the 
thirty->eventh  page  of  this  book.  1  nnist  ngaiu  say,  this  is  a 
beautiful  portage.  When  wo  got  over,  we  pulled  away  and 
made  two  other  little  jtortages,  after  which  wo  reached  the 
waters  of  Lake  de  Honnet.  We  dined  a  little  above  tin;  last 
two  portnge>".  1  was  the  cook  here,  while  niv  luen  and  the 
boys  were  bringing  up  the  things;  Ibr  1  must  ti-ll  the  world 
that  r  am  a  prett}'  go<id  cook  when  put  up  to  it.  The  tbod 
that  is  generally  prepared  and  eaten  in  those  regions  by 
voyagers  is  what  is  called  ''ahrubuhhoo,'  f  do  not  know 
wliat  the  word  itself  nutans.  I  spell  it  as  1  hear  it  pro- 
nounced. All  /tork  caters  from  Caiuida  do  not  know 
how  to  make  it.  I  shall  liero  tell  my  readers  how  1  pro- 
ceeded to  make  it ;  for  it  w.-is  this  sort  of  food  we  had  in  the 
voyage.  After  I  liad  got  the  wood  in  order,  and  made  a 
good  blazing  lire,  \  took  my  kettle,  went  to  the  lake,  and 
put  in  it  ahout  two  (piarts  of  water.  While  this  was  getting 
to  boil  over  the  tire  I  took  a  two-quart  hand  dish  lialf  full 
of  water,  and  put  into  it  some  flour,  and  stirred  it  till  it 
looked  like  mmli.  The  ])an  was  now  full.  As  the  water  in 
the  kettle  was  now  boiling.  V  took  my  ])an-dish,  and  put  all 
that  was  in  it  in  the  kettle,  where  it  bocann;  thinner,  I  then 
took  a  stick  and  stirn'd.  Tfiis,  of  course,  took  some  time  to 
boil.  When  it  boiled  f  ke))t  stirring  it  in  order  to  prevent 
the  dregs  of  the  tlour-soup  (if  1  may  so  call  it)  from  sinking 
and  sticking  at  the  bottom  of  the  kettle  and  burning.  Jf  it 
burned,  tlie  dinner  would  be  spoiled.  This  Irequently  hap- 
pens with  bad  and  indolent  cooks,     \  myself  succeeded  very 


J0^ 


iii;s.   iM;ri;i!  jacoiis. 


rj 


J. 


well,  us  I  was  (l<!t<)riiiiiit'<l  to  bo  a,  pfood  cook  on  this  occa- 
sion. All  cli'pciKis  uj»nii  tilt!  taitlit'iil  cojitinuancc  of  stirriiiji:^ 
thu  tl(>iir-si»U|»  wiili  a  stick,  until  sncli  a  tiniu  as  it  is  cooked. 
I  ourc't'nily  attoiuUMl  to  this,  ^\'llcn  tho  llour-soup  was  (piito 
cookcil,  I  reniov(!(l  the  kottio  tVonj  the  tiro,  and  whih)  my 
sonp  was  hoilinjj;'  hot  I  juinpod  at  my  hatchet  or  tomahawk, 
and  cut  to  pieces  about  a  jiound  weight  of  prriunicdn,  after 
which  I  threw  this  into  the  kettle.  I  stirred  this  quickly,  so 
that  the  grease  of  the  pemmiciDi  nii;,dit  bo  dissolved  in  the 
hot  llour-soup.  Thus  ends  the  (looking.  The  time  it  takes  to 
cook  this  is  loss  than  half  an  liour.  It  is  very  much  like 
what  is  called  in  some  countries  hiiri/oo.  This  "ahrubuhboo" 
is  iirsl-rate  food  for  travelers  in  this  countrv.  At  this  tiine  I 
poured  it  out  in  dishes  for  my  men  and  myself,  and  made  a 
good  dinner  out  of  it.  Very  often  tho  men,  when  they  arc  in 
a  gr«!at  hurry,  instead  of  using  dishes  and  spoons,  j)our  out 
their  "ahrubuhboo"  un  tho  smooth  hollow  rocks,  where  it 
becomes  cooler  in  a  short  time,  and  eat  it;  those  who  ha\'o 
no  spoons  generally  eat  it  in  tho  dog  fashion,  licking  it  up 
with  their  tongues.  Tho  pnnmican,  of  whkh  I  have  just 
made  mention,  is  made  by  pounding  dried  buH'alo  meat  and 
mixing  butl'alo  grease  with  it.  This  mixture  is  put  iti  bulfalo 
skin  bags  and  well  packed,  so  as  to  become  very  hard.  Kacii 
bagful  weighs  about  ninety  pounds.  The  pemmicaii,  when 
well  taken  earo  of,  will  last  three  or  four  years  without  being 
salted.  Jt  is  much  relished  by  "  Norwesters,"  and  is  the 
main  article  of  food  in  some  parts  of  Hudson's  l-5ay  Ter- 
ritory. 

After  dinner,  Lake  do  lionnot  being  calm,  we  start<}d  off, 
and  pulled  away  till  we  arrived  at  the  mouth  of  Still  Iviver, 
where,  on  one  of  tho  rocky  points,  wo  encamped  for  the  night. 
When  we  were  taking  our  supper,  we  congratulated  our- 
selves for  having  made  such  a  long  day's  v(»yage  this  day. 
I  flattered  my  young  men  very  much,  in  order  to  get  a  good 
day's  work  out  of  them  the  next  day. 

September  14. — Early  this  morning  wo  started  and  break- 
fasted on  a  beautiful  smooth  rock  at  the  narrow  entrances  of 
Still  Eiver.  The  scenery  here  is  very  beautiful.  After 
breakfast  we  went  on,  admiring  the  landscape  along  tho 
river.  Still  River  is  so  called  from  its  being  narrow  and 
deep,  and  from  its  flowing  very  gently,  so  as  to  present  ([uite 
a  smooth  surface.     It  takes  travelers  a  whole  dav  to  go  the 


74 


JOUUXAI,    OK    THE 


'  '  .^ 


t 

■■    I 

,    } 


I     V.     < 


I' 


whole-  length  of  It ;  it  has  very  little  current,  and  ha^  two  or 
three  beautiful  portages,  the  longest  of  which  is  about  half  a 
mile  in  length.  No  winds  can  retard  the  progress  of 
the  voyager.  Voyagers  very  often  take  this  route  in  going 
to  Lac  la  Pluie,  instead  of  taking  the  route  along  the  main 
river,  where  are  many  large  dangerous  falls  and  whirlpools, 
and  where  the  current  is  very  strong.  Still  River  is  alto- 
gethe"  the  best  route.  Some  of  the  marshes  along  this  river 
are  beautiful,  and  have  fine  hay  extending  about  five  miles 
in  length,  where  thousands  of  heads  of  cattle  could  be 
wintered. 

We  dined  at  a  portage  called  Crack  Rock  Portage,  which 
is  about  half  way  up  the  river.  It  received  its  name  from 
the  large  cracks  in  the  rocks  near  the  landing  of  the  portage. 
A  sad  accident  occurred  here  many  years  ago.  An  Indian 
child,  while  walking  about  among  the  cleft  rocks,  fell  in  one 
of  the  fissures ;  her  crie:i  reached  the  ears  of  the  mother,  who 
hastened  to  the  place,  but,  alas !  could  not  save  her.  The 
opening  in  the  rock  was  too  deep  and  too  narrow.  The 
child  was  therefore  left  to  die,  to  the  great  grief  of  the 
mother.  Her  bones  are  still  here  at  the  present  day. 
Travelers  passing  by,  and  especially  women,  are  told  the  sad' 
tale,  and  led  from  this  to  take  care  of  their  children. 

At  the  upper  end  of  this  portage  we  dined.  In  the  fall 
of  1849  a  circumstance  occurred  here,  in  which  an  Indian 
displayed  great  heroism.  I  shall  state  as  I  heard  it.  The 
Lac  la  Pluie  brigade  of  boats  was  then  going  up  this  river. 
After  the  boats  were  conveyed  over  the  portage  and  were 
all  loaded,  the  men,  that  is,  the  voyagers,  went  to  take  tlieir 
dinner  close  by.  In  one  of  the  boats  in  the  river,  a  fine 
young  boy  named  David,  son  of  Mr.  Isbister,  postmaster  of 
Lac  la  Pluie,  was  at  this  time  sleeping;  on  getting  up  bo 
fell  overboa;-d,  but  did  not  sink  on  account  of  his  clothes. 
The  current  was  fest  taking  him  down  to  the  pitch  of  tbe 
falls.  The  cry  was  immediately  made  that  a  boy  had  fallen 
into  the  water  and  was  taken  down  the  current.  The  moth- 
er set  up  a  heart-rending  cry,  but  no  one  moved  a  step  to 
save  the  boy,  although  there  were  above  twenty  men  there 
looking  on,  for  they  considered  it  certain  death  for  the  pei- 
sou  V.  ho  would  risk  his  lif'  in  the  attempt.  Ye  mothers, 
what  would  have  been  the  state  of  your  feelings  if  you  had 
been  your   child    thus  swept  away   by  a  strong  current! 


)a;v.   i'jMKi;  ,iacou.<. 


(  o 


i  has  two  oj' 
about  half  a 
progress   of 
ite  in  goino- 
'g  the  main 
whirlpools, 
ver  is  alto- 
ig  tliis  river 
t  five  miles 
i  could    be 

tage,  which 
rdme  from 
le  portage. 
An  Indian 
fell  in  one 
other,  who 
lier.     Tlie 
•ow.     The 
ief  of  the 
sent   day. 
Id  the  sad " 
1. 

ti  the  fall 
n  Indian 

t.  The 
his  river, 
and  were 

tke  their 

1',  a  fine 

aster  of 
g  lip  ho 

clothes. 

I  of  the 
d  fallen 
e  moth- 
step  to 

II  there 
he  per- 
■others, 
'-HI  had 
irront{ 


^% 


« 


How  much  would  you  have  ottered  b)  have  him  saved? 
At  length  an  Indian  named  Kewadin  (North  Wind)  jumped 
forward  and  leaped  into  -.he  water;  he  caught  hold  of  the 
child  and  proceeded  to  swim  across  the  stream.  No  one 
expected  to  see  him  reach  the  opposite  shore ;  but  great  was 
the  surprise  of  those  looking  on  when  they  saw  Kewadin 
come  up  with  the  child  frofff  the  water  on  the  other  side, 
just  above  the  place  where  the  water  falls  perpendicularly. 
Had  the  man  remained  a  few  seconds  longer  on  the  water, 
he  would  have  been  carried  down  the  falls.  It  was,  indeed, 
a  hair-breadth  escape.  The  man  afterward  returned,  and 
gave  up  the  child  to  the  weeping  mother.  Tliis  was  indeed 
a  noble  act  of  Jiis ;  he,  I  believe,  only  got  a  pair  of  corduroy 
trowers,  a  shirt,  and  a  few  other  things.  If  it  had  been  my 
child  that  was  sa\ed,  I  would  have  clothed  the  man  from 
head  to  foot. 

After  dinner  we  proceeded.  Along  the  sides  of  the  river 
were  fine  marshes  having  good  wild  hay,  extending  for 
miles  together.  During  the  afternoon  we  made  several  little 
portages,  and  at  five  o'clock  we  made  the  last  little  portage 
in  this  river,  and  soon  reached  the  main  river  again.  A 
laughable  incident  took  place  while  maknig  the  last-men- 
tioned portage.  We  wese  too  lazy  to  carry  the  canoe  on 
our  backs,  so  we  tried  to  pull  it  up  over  the  rapids  with  a 
cord.  The  rapids  had  not  a  rise  of  more  than  four  fool,  and 
were  not  more  than  thirty  or  tVirty  feet  in  leni»th.  Wo,  were 
on  the  south  side  on  a  sm<x>th  rock  noariy  perpendicular, 
and  nearly  five  feet  high.  After  the  ca«<>e  was  hauled  Uj» 
to  the  water  above,  we  came  down  the  rock  of  nearly  per- 
pendicular height  to  <Z'>  iu  the  canoe,  hut  a.^  I  was  aboui  to 
step  in,  my  foot  sii]>j^'d  on  the  smooti  rock,  and  in  ('aUing 
down  into  the  water,  knocked  ov<»r  one  of  my  mon,  who,  :n 
turn,  knocked  over  the  othor;  ^w  we  all  tliree  spIaKhod  in 
the  water  by  the  canoe.  We  could  u<A  provmA  ourselves 
from  going  in.  Luckily  at  this  place  the  waier  was  not 
more  than  four  f<;ot  deep.  We  ■•?.rug,'led  and  ««'»on  came  up 
to  the  surface,  with  our  heads  and  shoulders  al<  'le  out  of  the 
water.  One  of  my  men,  who  was  nearest  to  the  canoe, 
which  was  already  approaching  the  rApid«,  plunged  i:i  that 
direction  and  laid  hold  of  the  canoe,  and  ke^  it  horn  going 
down  the  rapids  which  we  had  just  passed.  All  ihh  took 
place  in   a  moment.     We  jrave   vent   to   our   mirth,  and 


gave 


76 


JULiiNAL    Ob'    Till; 


V  3i 


\l 


laughed  at  ourselves  on  account  <>f  uur  misfortune.  We 
waded  right  over  to  the  opposite  shore,  and  landed  on  a 
level  spot  of  ground.  Our  clothes  were,  of  course,  all  wet ; 
but  this  was  of  no  consequence,  as  wo  had  our  traveling 
dress.  Perhaps  my  readers  would  like  to  know  what  my 
traveling  dress  consists  of.  I  generally  wear  a  wide-awake 
hat,  a  striped  colored  shirt,  a  girdle  and  corduroy  trowsers, 
without  a  handkerchief,  coat,  vest,  shoes,  or  socks.  The  men, 
or  regular  voyagers,  wear  a  cap,  a  colored  shirt,  a  girdle,  and 
common  linen  trowsers,  This  is  all  they  wear.  Our  wading 
in  the  water  so  often  easily  accounts  for  our  not  wearing 
shoes;  besides,  we  get  warm  enough  without  putting  on  more 
clothing.  We  suffer,  however,  in  one  respect,  for  wearing  no 
neckkerchief.  Our  enemies,  the  musquetoes,  take  advant- 
age of  us  while  our  necks  are  exposed.  We  do  not  care 
much  for  them  in  genei'al,  as  each  one  takes  such  a  very  small 
portion  of  blood ;  but  when  thousands  come  and  take  away 
much  blood,  then  there  is  no  fun  in  it.  Millions  of  these 
annoying  musquetoes  wait  for  passengers  at  the  landing  of 
the  portages  in  this  country,  and  very  politely  escort  them 
through  the  length  of  the  portages,  against  the  will  of  the 
])assengers,  and  for  their  trouble,  they  take  their  pay  in 
blood.  It  was  from  wearing  my  voyager's  dress  tliat  I  lost 
all  ray  fine  suits  of  clothes  in  Lake  Winnipeg,  when  my 
canoe  was  upset.  I  always  wear  my  common  dress  in  voy- 
aging, as  I  work  as  well  as  my  men.  1  might  go  like  a 
passenger,  as  gentleman,  but  1  seldom  do. 

We  soon  went  over  the  beautiful  Otter  Portajxe.  We 
encamped  a  short  distance  above  the  falls.  Only  one  third 
of  the  land  that  we  have  seen  lately  is  fit  for  cultivation, 
about  half  of  the  rest  is  rock,  and  the  other  lialf  swamp. 

September  15. — Early  on  this  morning,  it  being  a  fine  day, 
we  made  a  start.  At  breakfast  time  we  met  with  Indians 
at  the  rapids  of  the  Little  Sturgeon  Weir;  these  Indians 
gave  us  some  presents  of  rice,  and  we  gave  them  tobacco  in 
return,  of  which  they  were  in  great  want.  At  the  foot  of 
these  rapids  is  a  very  large  whirlpool,  behind  a  smooth  rock 
island.  I  will  relate  what  occurred  here  in  one  of  my  former 
voyages,  in  the  year  1849.  On  coming  down  the  river  I  land- 
ed at  the  liead  of  these  falls  to  pick  a  few  wild  plums  that 
were  in  sight.  While  thus  engaged,  my  men  left  mo  and 
proceeded  to  make  the  portage  below ;  I  was  thus  left  to 


^ 


f 


IIEV.    PETER    .lACOIJ.S. 


77 


landed  on  a 
rse,  all  Wet  ; 
"!•  traveling 
^^'  what  lay 

^vide-awake 
^'y^  trowsers, 
'J'^ie  men, 
.  gii'dle,  and 
^uj'  wading 
lot  wearing 
"g  on  mov(i 
wearing  no 
ke  ad  van  t- 

0  not  care 
veiy  small 
take  away 
"^  of  these 

landing  of 

'cort  them 

■viil  of  the 

|ir  pay  in 

that  1  Jost 

wiieii  my 

5s  in  voy- 

?o  like  a 

?e.  We 
»ne  third 
'tivation, 
tmp, 

fine  day, 
Indians 
Indians 
>acco  in 
foot  of 
th  rock 
former 

1  land - 
IS  that 
ic  and 
ieft  to 


«1 


t 

n 


walk  down  to  the  water's  edge.  When  I  arrived  there,  my 
men  had  just  finished  reloading  their  canoe,  and  pushed 
out;  but  by  some  carelessness  or  other,  they  got  into  the 
whirlpool.  They  pulled  hard  for  their  lives,  but  apparentl}- 
in  vain.  I  was  in  the  meantime  on  the  main  shore,  trem 
bHng  and  praying  for  them.  I  was  safe  enough,  but  ) 
thought  that  my  men  would  perish.  Fortunately  thort 
were  in  the  canoe  two  large  extra  paddles,  which  the  youn^ 
men  laid  hold  of  and  used.  They  made  another  orreat  effort, 
and  at  last  they  extricated  themselves  from  the  whirlpool 
When  they  came  to  me,  they  were  as  jiale  as  death.  1  wa< 
never  so  thankful  to  the  (liver  of  all  good  and  P]terna. 
Preserver,  for  preserving  my  men  at  this  time,  for  the 
heathen  enemies  of  the  cross  would  have  said  that  the 
missionnry  had  willfully  drowned  his  men  in  this  awfui 
whirlpool. 

As  it  was  a  fine  day,  we  made  guod  jjrogress  in  our  voy- 
age. We  dined  at  tlie  upper  end  of  the  Slave  Falls.  In 
the  afternoon  we  made  what  are  called  by  the  Indians, 
"  Kahnesoosingin,"  or  the  Three  I'ortages.  The  two  upper 
are  called  Portaofe  du  Bois.  In  the  eveninji*  we  made  the 
Chats  du  Jacques,  and  slept  there. 

September  16. — This  morning  wo  pulled  against  a  strong 
current  for  a  number  of  miles.  We  then  went  on  the  long 
lake,  called  the  Orand  Turn ;  after  this  we  again  contended 
against  a  strong  current,  and  slept  at  the  upper  end  of  the 
Island  Portage.  Hero  in  the  evening  some  Indians  came, 
and  bronufht  us  some  rice  and  fish,  for  which  we  gave  them 
tobacco.  Among  these  was  Chief  Wahscjeese,  with  other 
Indians,  who  belong  to  Islington,  the  Chiur^  Mission  Sta- 
tion. The  following  day,  after  passing  many  a  turn  in  the 
lake  and  river,  we  reached  the  White  l^og,  or,  as  it  is  now 
called,  Islington,  about  dinner-time.  ilere  wc  remained 
the  rest  of  the  day.  We  were  kindiy  received  and  treated 
by  Mr.  Kennedy,  the  person  in  ch-irge  of  the  place.  We 
had  a  good  dinner,  supper,  and  breakfast,  and  comlbrtable 
night's  lodgings  from  him.  While  I  was  here  with  the  peo- 
ple I  had  evening  and  morning  prayer  with  them. 

September  18. — -When  I  wished  to  go  on  this  morning  I 
found  that  my  two  men  were  unable  (as  they  said)  to  pro- 
ceed on  the  vovaore  with  me.  Poor  fellows!  One  ^nid  he 
had  the  stomach  ache :  the  other  said  he  had  a  fever.     For 


"^jgs'' 


78 


.KJUUXAl.    OF     illH 


the  sitiuitiuii  and  the  quality  of  the  soil  about  the  place,  see 
page  35  of  this  journal. 

As  there  were  a  couple  of  lads  liere,  I  hired  thern  to  go 
with  me  to  Kat  Portag';\  In  the  early  part  of  the  df,y  we 
arrived  at  the  Crst  of  several  portages,  which  are  close 
together  here.  By  one  o'clock  P.  M.  we  finished  making 
four  portages ;  we  dined  at  the  upper  end  of  the  last 
portage. 

I  will  just  relate  what  occurred  here  in  one  of  my  former 
trips,  in  1849.  At  the  head  of  the  rapids  is  a  small  rock 
jutting  out  into  the  w^ater,  and  behind  the  rock  is  a  little 
eddy.  In  this  eddy  my  men,  as  they  walked  on  the  high 
rock,  many  feet  above  the  water,  espied  a  large  sturgeon, 
which  was  observed,  at  one  time,  to  remain  on  the  surface 
of  the  water,  and  sometimes  to  be  thrown  quite  above  the 
surface,  by  the  motion  of  the  water,  and  at  another  time  to 
disappear.  My  men  said  that  they  would  give  anything  for 
this  large  fresh  sturgeon.  To  catch  and  kill  it  was  impossi- 
ble, for  there  was  no  spear  in  our  possession.  But  the  men 
still  looked  as  eaixerly  at  it  as  an  Eno-lishman  would  have 
looked,  had  there  been  a  bag  of  gold  in  the  water.  "  Come, 
come,"  said  I  to  my  men,  "  it  is  no  use  to  waste  more  tiine 
looking  at  it ;  we  will  never  get  it ;  it  has  only  to  move 
its  tail  once,  and  then  it  is  out  of  our  reach."  But  the  men 
were  loath  to  come  away.     At  las^one  of  them  said  ; 

"I  w'ill  try  one  experiment,  if  you  will  let  me." 

"  What  is  that  ?"  said  I. 

"  Let  me  have  your  double-barreled  gun,"  said  he, 
"and  I  will  put  ball  in  it,  and  will  hide  behind  the  rock 
yonder ;  I  will  then  shoot  the  sturgeon  on  the  head,  when  it 
comes  up  to  the  surface,  but  let  another  man  go  down  and 
stand  in  the  water  up  to  his  knees,  behind  another  point  of 
rock  close  by.  If  I  shoidd  then  stun  tlie  sturgeon  by  firing 
at  it,  the  man  in  the  water  will  rush  toward  it  and  drag  it 
up." 

"  Here  is  my  gun,"  said  I,  at  once ;  '*  your  plan  of  opera- 
tion is  an  excellent  one." 

So  he  took  the  gun,  and  after  loading  it,  he  went  down 
below,  with  another  man,  to  put  his  plan  into  execution.  The 
rest  of  us,  who  stood  upon  a  rock  about  sixty  feet  high, 
nearly  perpendicular,  watched  the  two  men  below  us.  Wo 
had  quitt;  a  good  view.     Both  of  the  men  took  their  post:? 


IlKV.    l'l!;T£U    JACOB.S. 


19 


the  place,  see 

I  them  to  go 
i'  the  c]f,y  we 
ch  are  close 
ihed  making 
of  the  last 

)f  my  former 
•I  small  rock 
k  is  a  little 
on  the  Iiigh 
?e  sturgeon, 

the  surface 
e  above  the 
ther  time  to 
anything  for 
^as  irapossi- 
'Ut  the  men 
vould  have 
.     "  Come, 

more  time 
"'  to  move 
It  the  men 
aid : 


said  he, 
the  rock 
,  when  it 
own  and 
point  of 
hy  firing 
drag  it 

>f  opera- 
It  down 
)n.  The 
et  high, 
.      We 

!■  pO,St3 


at  the  time  the  sturgeon  disappeared  under  the  surface  of  the 
water.  Every  five  minutes  the  stuigoon  used  to  come  up. 
Presently  it  rose  up  finely  to  the  surface,  and,  at  this  time, 
the  man  with  the  gun  banged  away  at  it.  In  an  instant  we 
saw  the  under  part  of  the  sturgeon.  The  other  Indian,  in 
the  meantime,  who  was  within  a  yard  and  a  half  of  th<'  spot, 
sprang  at  the  wounded  sturgeon  as  eagerly  as  the  Bs!i  hawk 
after  its  prey.  He  seized  it,  but  could  not  take  it  up,  for  it 
wanted  to  go  into  the  deep  water.  The  other  man,  ;it  this  time, 
put  down  the  gun,  and  ran  to  the  aid  of  his  ct)'npanion. 
After  a  tug  of  three  or  four  minutes  they  brought  u])  the 
sturgeon  high  and  dry,  to  the  joy  of  the  rest  of  my  men. 
The  ball  liad  entered  the  back  of  the  neck.  This  was  the 
first  sturgeon  that  I  had  seen  killed  with  a  bullet.  We  lost 
no  time  in  cleaning,  cooking,  and  eating  it.  It  made  a  good 
dinner  lor  my  twelve  men.  >>ome  remained  over  and  above, 
for  the  lish  weighed  frcm  forty-five  to  fifty  pound^\ 

We  passed  through  one  or  two  small  lakes  this  afternoon, 
and  encaniped  on  the  point  of  a  beautiful  rock.  There  are 
many  vocks  about  this  phuje. 

S( pU'iiiher  10. — This  morning  we  made  an  early  start. 
At  tiMi  o'clock  >ve  made  a  portage  half  a  mile  long,  and  at 
one  o'clock  arrived  at  the  Kat  Portage  Establishment.  Mr. 
M'KciiKiie,  the  gentleman  in  charge  ')f  the  place,  gave  us  a 
good  dinncu'  of  fresh  fish'.  There  were  very  few  persons  at 
this  place  at  this  time ;  it  looked  very  solitary.  Soon  after 
dinner  we  left  the  establishment,  and  pulled  through  the 
leni.  ch  of  a  long  lake.  We  encamped  at  the  Narrows  for 
the  night. 

September  20. — A  fine  morning.  We  started  early. 
The  Jjako  ot  the  Woods  being  calm,  we  pulled  on,  and  by 
ten  o''.'lock  P.  M.  we  finished  crossing  the  long,  beautiful 
lake.     ^V^e  made  a  good  long  voyage  to-dav. 

S('i)t('inJ)cr  '21. — The  morning  was  beautiful.  We  made 
an  eariy  start,  as  usual  As  we  entered  the  mouth  of  the 
Lac  la  Pluie  lliver,  which  is  seventy-rive  miles  in  length,  we 
met  a  trading-boat  going  to  \^^lit(;  Fish  Lake,  to  trade  for 
furs  with  the  Indians.  It  was  in  charge  of  Narcisse  Chan- 
telhin,  who  gave  us  some  fresh  sturgeon,  which  we  thank- 
full}  accepted.  We  went  a  great  distance  to-day.  We 
.slept  at  the  Long  Sault. 

September  22. — A  fine  day.     We  were  ofi"  early  again. 

fi 


80 


JOURNAL    OF    Tilt: 


;    :', 


\::l 


i 

tl 


.^1, 


VVc  made  the  Manito  Kapids  Portage.  Here  we  had  our 
breakfast.  Late  in  the  evening  we  arrived  at  Fort  Frances, 
wliere  I  was  well  received  by  my  friend,  Mr.  Pether. 

In  the  following  lines,  1  shall  make  further  remarks  with 
respect  to  Lac  la  Pluie  station,  in  addition  to  those  I  made 
before  on  page  3L  Below  the  falls,  not  far  from  the  fort,  is 
a  line  place  for  white  fish.  The  Company's  men  go  every 
morning,  at  seven  o'clock,  to  this  place,  with  a  seine  about 
seventy  feet  long,  and  after  throwing  it  once  or  twice  into 
the  river,  bring  away  with  them  enough  fish  for  breakfast, 
and  sometimes  for  dinner.  While  I  was  stationed  h(!re,  I 
had  many  a  good  breakfast  oa  these  white  fish.  Li  the  fall 
of  the  year,  when  many  more  fish  are  caught,  the  Company 
get  them  salted  in  casks  for  the  winter  supply. 

I  will  give  here  an  instance  of  my  good  luck  in  spearing 
sturgeon  in  the  daytime.  On  the  21st  of  March,  1839,  I. 
wont  out  with  the  intention  of  spearing  sturgeon,  as  it  was 
a  fine  day.  The  river,  below  the  falls,  for  more  than  the 
length  of  a  rnile,  remains  open  during  the  winter,  on  actxnmt  of 
the  strong  current,  or  rather  on  account  of  many  springs  here. 
It  was  here  I  fished.  I  had  a  young  man  with  me  to  paddle 
my  canoe.  As  I  was  going  out  from  the  shore,  A.  M'Donald, 
Esq.,  chief  factor,  asked  me  if  I  was  going  out  to  fish ;  and 
when  I  told  him  I  was,  he  said,  "  Now,  be  sure  to  leave 
a  he  one  and  a  she  one  to  breed,  after  you  have  killed  the 
rc.-,t."  This  was  as  much  as  to  say  that  I  would  n^.t  kill 
any.  I  pushed  otf;  for  a  quarter  of  a  mile  I  saw  no^'iing  in 
the  water  but  the  gravel  at  the  bottom  of  the  river.  As  we 
pro(;eeded  down,  I  saw  two  sturgeon  lying  together  like  logs. 
I  plunged  my  spear  into  the  neck  of  one  of  them,  and  there- 
by knocked  it  stift"  dead  ;  therefore  I  had  no  trouble  to  haul 
it  into  tho  canoe.  My  steersman  was  quite  delighted  at  my 
success.  1  soon  got  my  spear  out  of  the  dead  sturgeon,  and 
pushed  upstream,  seeking  the  sturgeon's  mate.  I  could  see 
the  bottom  of  the  river  a  long  way  before  me,  as  the  water 
at  this  place  was  only  six  or  seven  feet  deep.  I  soon  spied 
the  other  also,  and  i.  ■  t  it  .:ito  my  canoe.  This  encouraged 
me  to  fish  longer.  T  then  went  in  a  lift'erent  direction,  and 
saw  another  sturgeon,  and  another.  I  now  saw  a  large  number 
of  them.  I  speared  on,  till  I  actually  got  ten  into  my  canoe. 
The  canoe  could  not  now  hold  more,  so  we  had  to  throw 
them  out  on  the  ice,  along  the  shore,  for  it  must  he  borne 


KEV.    PETEH    JACOU.S. 


81 


ve  had  our 
)rt  P'rances, 
lier. 

marks  witli 
ose  I  made 

the  fort,  is 
1  go  every 
seine  about 

twice  into 

breakfast, 
led  h(!re,  I 

In  the  fall 
i  Company 

n  spearino- 

h,  1839,1 

1,  as  it  was 

e  than  the 

aco(*unt  of 

rings  heiv. 

!  to  paddle 

AI'Donald, 

fish ;  and 

e  to  leave 

killed  the 

d  not  kill 

lo^iin<J:  i'l 

\     As  we 

like  loo's. 

uid  there- 

le  to  haul 

,ed  at  my 

:?eon,  and 

could  see 

the  water 

oon  spied 

couraffod 

tion,  and 

number 

i y  canoe. 

to  throw 

he  borne 


in  mind,  that  at  this  time,  in  these  cold  regions,  it  is  yet 
very  cold,  and  a  regular  winter.  As  soon  as  wo  emptied  the 
canoe,  we  pushed  oti"  in  search  of  other  sturgeon,  and  soon 
got  ten  more.  These  wo  were  obliged  again  to  throw  out 
on  the  ice.  When  we  went  out  again  we  caught  (Mght 
more.  As  it  was  now  late  in  the  day,  we  retired  from  fish- 
ing. So  we  had  twenty-eight  in  all.  T  never  had  such  a 
good  sturgeon  fishing  in  all  my  life.  The  weight  of  each 
of  these  sturgeon  varied  from  forty  to  one  hundred  pounds. 
We  could  .only  tr.l:e  a  limited  number  home,  not  even  half. 
The  inhabitants  of  the  fort  were  very  glad  to  takti  the  stur- 
geon that  I  threw  out  to  them.  They  soon  went  for 
the  remainder  that  were  lying  on  the  ice.  When  all  were 
brought,  each  family  took  a  sturgeon  and  feasted  out  and  out. 
I  went  out  several  times  after,  during  the  remaining  days  of 
March,  and  in  April,  for  the  same  purpose,  but  I  never  had 
more  than  from  ten  to  fifteen  stur<jeon.  For  the  otlier  vears 
that  I  was  here  we  used  to  make  an  annual  sturgeon  fishin<r 
the  same  time  of  the  year.  There  were  generally  about  fifteen 
canoes  of  us.  In  these  fishing  excursions  I  excelled  other 
fishermen.  W^hile  I  used  to  have  ten  or  fifteen  fish,  the 
others  had  never  more  than  ,'ibout  five  each.  I  consider 
myself  very  expert  in  spearing  fish  ;  T  do  not  acknowledge 
an  equal,  much  less  a  superior,  here.  It  does  not  matter 
how  fast  a  sturgeon  goes  by  me,  it  is  mine  if  it  comes  with- 
in the  reach  of  ray  spear-pole. 

In  the  same  open  water,  I  and  others  used  to  spear 
white  fish  during  the  winti'r,  evrrv  week.  This  was 
in  the  night.  At  the  head  of  my  canoe  I  used  to  place  a 
torch  to  give  light ;  by  this  means  I  plainly  saw  the  fish 
and  speared  them.  While  other  Pshermen  used  to  get  from 
fifteen  to  twenty  Avhite  fish  in  one  night,  I  used  to  get  from 
forty  to  fifty.  1  was  known,  far  and  wide,  as  the  greatest 
spearsman  that  came  into  the  territory.  No  man  among  the 
Company's  servants,  or  among  the  Tndi.uis  round,  was 
known  to  be  equal  (>»  me. 

The  next  thing  that  I  shall  speak  about  is  rabbit-snaring 
in  winter,  x  was  not  so  famed  for  snaring  rabl)its  as  I  was 
for  spearing  fish  ;  I  was  quite  a  seoond-rate  hand.  To  show 
this  more  plainly,  when  1  would  >nare  fifteen  rabbits  on  one 
night,  my  friend  (Jhantellain,  interpreter  of  the  Fort,  would 
snare  ihirtv,  and  when  1  wouid  snare  thirtv,  he  would  snare 


w 


82 


.lor  UN  A  I,    Ol'    THK 


sixty.  The  liiejhest  niiiuber  1  over  snared  on  one  night  was 
forty ;  I  luvd  then  ninety-five  snares  out.  This  number  of 
forty  rahhits  woukl  be  considered  impossible  to  get  in  (*anada 
in  one  night.  My  friend  0.  snared  tnghty  rabbits  the  same 
time ;  but  lie  had  one  liun(h'ed  and  fifty  snares  out  that 
night.  A  party  of  us,  consisting  of  five  men,  having  once 
gone  out  for  ten  or  fifteen  days,  we  snared  fifteen  hundred 
rabbits,  besides  those  that  we  ate  in  the  meantime.  Each 
man  ate  tliree  rabbits  per  day,  and  sometimes  an  extra  one 
for  supper.  The  way  to  snare  rabbits  is  to  make  liedges 
crossing  their  well-beaten  path,  and  to  leave  a  small  opening 
for  them  to  run  through.  At  the  opening  a  snare-line  is  set, 
the  end  of  which  is  fastened  to  a  bending  willow,  which, 
when  ])ulled  a  little,  as  in  the  case  of  the  rabbit  moving  tlie 
line,  springs  up  with  the  rabbit,  as  is  generally  tlie  case. 
Thus,  when  the  snarer  comes  in  the  morning,  lie  finds  In's 
rabbit  hanging  u})  by  the  neck  in  the  air,  like  a  culprit. 
When  all  the  snaring  parties  of  the  Company  come  liome 
from  the  wooils,  thev  brin<:f  from  eicjht  to  ten  thousand  rab- 
bits.     Those  keep  i'resh  and  good  during  the  winter  months. 

A  few  words  now  about  goose  and  duck  shooting.  In 
this  L  was  over-matched  by  my  friend  W.  Sinclair,  Esq.,  now 
chief  factor  in  the  Company's  service.  Whenever  I  went  out 
in  the  month  of  April  to  shoot  geese  flying,  about  the  bays 
and  marshes  of  Lac  la  Pluie,  I  used  to  bring  home  five  or 
six  geese  per  trip.  But  Mr.  8.  g  nerally  brought  home 
double  or  treble  the  number  I  had.  In  the  month  of  April 
we  used  to  have  so  many  geese,  that  we  had  a  goose  for 
breakfast,  a  goose  for  dinnei',  and  a  goose  for  suppei' ;  at 
timi\s  I  got  sick  at  the  very  sight  of  a  goose  on  the  table. 

Fort  Frances  is  a  very  great  fort  for  rich  furs.  A  traveler 
calling  at  the  fur  store  in  the  end  of  May,  would  see  in  one 
half  hour's  time,  as  I  have  seen,  more  rich  furs  than  he  would 
see  in  thirt\-  years'  time  in  Canada.  When  these  furs  are 
packed  up,  they  are  taken  in  boats  to  York  Factoiy,  Hud- 
son's l>av,  and  from  Hudson's  Bay  thev  are  taken  in  the 
Company's  ship  to  England,  where  most  of  them  are  sold  at 
a  great  price ;  some  are  sent  to  other  Eurojiean  markets,  in 
short,  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  are  milking  a  very  rich 
trade  out  of  the  Indians  in  this  territory.  The  Hudson  Bay 
Company  is  the  onlv  monopoli7:ing  company  that  now  exists 
in  British  North  America ;  it  is  therefore  vcrv  rich., 


i 


^ 


ItRV.    I'EIKi:    JAC'OIIS, 


83 


night  was 
number  of 
in  (yjinacla 

the  same 
3  out  that 
.ving  once 
1  hundred 
no.  Each 
extra  one 
ke  hedges 
ill  opening- 
line  is  set, 
)w,  which, 
loving  tlie 

the  ease. 

finds  his 
a  culprit, 
imo  home 
isand  rab- 
ir  months. 
)ting.  In 
Esq.,  ROW 

went  out 

the  bays 
ne  five  or 

ht  liome 

of  April 
goose  tor 
ipper;   at 

table. 
^  traveler 
ee  in  one 
he  would 

fui's  are 
iry,  ilud- 
'U  in  the 
^e  sold  at 
kets.  in 
^'ery  rich 

son  Bay 
3w  existe 


t 


While  I  was  stationed  here  as  missionary,  our  religious 
services  were  conducted  in  the  Church  of  England  form. 
Every  Sunday  morning  we  read  the  whole  of  the  morning 
prayer  as  it  is  in  the  l^raycr  liook.  Sometimes  I  preached 
extempore,  other  times  1  read  Wesley's  Sermons.  When 
all  the  company's  servants  were  ])resent  at  our  service,  we 
had  a  very  ffood  cono'rejjation.  As  reo-ards  the  Indians,  I 
used  to  speak  to  thein  separately  altogether.  In  the  winter 
very  few  or  none  were  to  be  seen  about  the  fort;  in  the 
summer  sometimes  great  numbers  were  congregated  together 
in  the  open  ground  near  the  falls.  They  are  great  idohiters. 
Their  meda  belief  is  very  stronf^,  and  very  little  can  bo  done 
to  turn  them  away  from  the  service  of  Satan,  while  they  are 
so  much  under  tlui  influence  of  the  conjurers.  Ver\  few  of 
them  received  the  Christian  bapt''-m  wliile  I  was  here. 

September  23. — After  dinner,  at  noon,  I  paid  oft'  my  men 
that  brought  me  from  the  White  Dog,  and  hired  two  other 
men  from  the.  fort  to  take  mo  on  my  journey.  One  was 
young  Judah,  the  son  of  Baptiste  Judali,  a  French  half  breed. 
The  other  was  an  Indian  named  iJoozoway.  We  started 
from  Fort  Frances  for  Fort  William  after  dinner. 

At  the  mouth  of  tlie  river  we  met  two  joung  Indians  in 
separate  canoes;  one  gave  me  some  (hicks  and  the  other 
gave  me  a  goose.  As  usual,  1  gave  them  tobacco  in  return. 
We  now  entered  Rainy  Lake;  we  encamped  on  one  of  the 
first  islands  that  we  came  to.  In  the  evening  it  was  raining 
hard.  We  turned  our  canoe  bottom  upward,  put  poles  over 
it,  and  then  threw  our  oil-cloth  over  the  whole ;  under  this 
we  were  quite  secure  from  the  rain.  We  made  a  good  fire, 
and  prepared  our  ducks  for  supper ;  after  our  prayers  we  lay 
down  under  the  canoe  for  a  good  sleep. 

September  24. — A  tine  day.  We  pulled  away  through 
the  length  of  Rainy  Lake,  and  made  our  encampment  at  the 
upper  end  of  two  portages.  This  was  considered  a  good 
day's  voyage.  Here  we  cooked  our  goose,  and  not  only  ate 
the  whole  goose,  but  two  or  three  ducks  besides.  I  consider 
these  voyages  just  the  things  to  sharpen  the  appetite.  I 
would  recommend  all  ladies  and  gentlemen,  who  have  lost 
their  appetites  in  towns  and  cities,  to  come  and  take  a  long 
voyage  in  this  direction.  I  would  assure  them  that  they 
would  return  in  a  much  improved  condition. 

September  25. — Anothoi-  fine  day.     It  blew  verv  hard. 


I 


84 


.lorUNAI,    OF    THK 


i 


but  tlo  wiihl  was  in  our  favor.  In  t\\  >  liours  wo  passed  the 
Nalnnalciiun.  or  Sturgeon  Lake.  Wluti  \vc  reachctl  tho  en- 
trance of  tlu-  Naliiiiftkaun  llivfr,  it  blew  a  liurrioano;  \ve 
were  glad  that  wo  wen-  not  wind-bound;  wo  oongratulau-d 
ourselves  'hat  we  were  in  a  narrow  river  at  this  time.  Wo 
pullod  up  strcain,  and  made  several  portages  during  ' '^day. 
Nothing  worth  rehitii  occurred  to-day,  but  I  \v<  i  ; elate 
what  occurred  at  the  .second  portage  from  Nahm  dcaun  in 
one  of  my  tornier  voyages.  The  fall  is  four  f'-et  high,  and  is 
nearly  perpond'cula  •.  The  surface  of  the  water  where  it 
begins  to  fall  is  quite  snuntth.  The  fall  is  so  large  that  voy- 
agers dare  not  shoot  over,  as  they  do  in  smaller  falls.  1  and 
my  men  were  coming  from  Fort  William,  Lake  Superior, 
with  a  load  of  Hour,  for  the  use  of  my  family  at  Fort  Frances. 
I  was  not  able  that  year  to  get  tlour  from  iud  lliver,  on  ac- 
count of  the  troop>  being  there.  We  had  intended  to  go 
near  the  pitch  of  the  rapids,  in  ord<r  to  save  ourselves  much 
labor  and  trouble,  and  to  make  a  short  portage  of  thirty  feet. 
But  in  approaching  the  desiro<l  phice  just  above  the  pitch, 
we  acoidentahv  touched  a  stone  under  our  canoe,  which  was 
immediately  whirled  round  ;  as  there  wa^  a  strong  current 
besides,  the  canoe  became  ungovernable.  I  was  steersman 
at  the  time.  The  canoe  was  fast  going  down  on  her  b'-oad- 
side;  our  only  alternative,  tlierefore,  was  to  go  down  tho  falls. 
It  was  too  late  to  go  back.  Down  we  went.  As  we  were 
gomg  down,  ]  cried  out  to  my  men;  telling  them  to  squat  at 
tlie  bottom  of  the  canoe,  while  I  did  the  same  at  the  same 
moment.  Phi^h  we  went;  every  one  of  us,  without  knowing 
it  at  tlio  time,  lost  his  paddle.  By  this  time  our  canoe  was 
half  full  of  w\ater.  For  a  few  minutes  we  were  senseless. 
There  was  our  luggage  floating  about,  the  flour-bags  were 
quite  wet.  My  men,  as  I  said  before,  lost  all  their  paddles, 
and  as  I  also  lost  my  steering  paddle,  our  canoe  was  now  at 
the  mercy  of  the  rocks  below,  to  be  dashed  to  pieces  on  strik- 
ing them.  At  this  critical  moment  kind  Providence  sent  up 
my  paddle  to  my  hand,  that  is,  by  the  motion  of  the  water 
about  a  whirlpool,  my  paddle  was  forced  up  erect  near  me, 
and  I  laid  hold  of  it,  and  steered  tlie  canoe,  so  that  we  evad- 
ed the  projecting  rocks  that  threatened  to  break  our  canoe  to 
pieces,  and  went  to  an  eddy,  where  my  men  luckily  got  their 
paddles.  We  soon  went  down  all  right  again,  as  if  nothing 
had  liappenod.      Atheists  would  say  that  we  were  saved  by 


t 


IlKV.    I'KIKK    JACOUH. 


S5 


passcnJ  the 
0(1  tho  en- 
ic'.'ine ;  ue 
.Knit.ulatcd 
iirif.     Wo 

i  i    :  olato 
1  'kmin  in 
i^'Ii,  aii'l  is 
wlioro   it 
Uiat  voy- 
^-     1  and 
'"Superior, 
;  Frances. 
L^r,  on  ac- 
cd  to  go 
t'es  mucli 
lii'ty  feet. 
Ju»  pitch, 
liicli  was 
:  current 
tecrsinan 
!r  broad- 
tho  talk 
we  were 
squat  at 
hi-  same 
snowing 
noe  was 
enseiess. 
gs  were 
oaddies, 
now  at 
n  strik- 
aent  up 
e  water 
jar  me, 
3  evad- 
anoe  to 
)t  their 
othing- 
'ed  by 


our  breakfast  at 

he  clouds  began  to 

or  snow.     At 

^oon  it  was  por- 

o'ciock  in  the  after- 


chance  on  tills  occasion.  I  have  no  doubt  that  (Jud  inter- 
posed to  sav(!  and  j)rotect  us.  I  gave  him  hearty  thanks  for 
])roserving  me  ;ind  my  men,  and  for  saving  our  ("anoe  from 
destruction.  1  had  then  four  men.  The  canoe  was  a  middle- 
sized  one. 

We  encamped  for  tho  night  at  Shingwahkokahning. 

S('pte7uf)('r  20. — We  made  several  portages,  and  passed 
several  lakes  during  the  day.  We  made  a  tolerablv  nood 
voyage  :  we  encamped  on  the  shore  of  a  lake.  Tho  country 
that  we  have  passed  for  more  than  eight  hundred  miles  is 
very  little  worth  for  agricultural  purposes. 

ScpUnnhcr  27. — Early  this  morning  w.'  started,  and  made 
two  portages  and  two  lakes.  VV^c 
( >goiu'i'kahning  liako.  After  brea' 
gather,  and  looked  as  if  it  was  goii 
twi.lv(!  o'clock  the  snow  fell  fast  an 
ceivable  lying  on  the  ground.  At 
noon  we  arrived  at  the  French  portage.  In  tho  year  1839, 
when  Mr.  Evans  and  1  were  traveling  here  together,  we  and 
our  men  nearly  starved.  1  went  along  the  bay  at  this  place, 
and  foun<l  a  small  creek  running  into  it.  I  thought,  from 
the  appearance  of  the  clear  stream,  that  fish  could  be  taken 
here  in  the  night  ly  spearing.  So  in  the  meantime  I  got 
ready  my  spear  and  birch-bark  for  flambeaux.  When  night 
came,  1  tishod  and  caught  a  large  number  of  fine  pickerel. 
I  brought  them  home ;  the  hearts  of  our  hungry  men  were 
(juite  gladdened  at  the  sight  of  the  fish.  Our  men  had  a 
regular  ''blow  out"  of  a  breakfast  the  next  morning. 

In  making  this  long  portage,  1  never  suffered  so  much  in 
these  cold  regions  for  the  whole  term  of  twelve  years  that  I 
was  in  them,  as  1  did  at  this  time.  It  snowed  very  much, 
and  the  wind  was  strong.  We  had  to  follow  a  narrow  path, 
on  each  side  of  which  were  pine  bushes  and  other  evergreens 
covered  with  wet  snow.  It  was  impossible  to  walk  on  with- 
out touching  these  ;  consequently  our  clothes  were  cjuite  wet 
from  the  snow  melting  on  them.  We  were  drenched  to  tho 
skin,  and  felt  very  cold  by  the  time  we  reached  the  other 
end  of  the  portage.  My  men  nearly  cried  from  the  cold.  I 
was  not  in  a  much  better  state.  Our  teeth  were  chattering 
from  the  cold.  0  how  glad  we  were  when  we  kindled  a 
large  blazing  fire,  and  partook  of  a  hearty  supper.  Although 
the  day  was  so  cold,  yet  tho  lakes  were  still  open  for  us  to 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


// 


^>^ 


//      ,.v 


t^ 


*'-.'V^^ 


l>^    '^^^^ 


1.0 


I.I 


l^|28     |2.5 

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12.0 


Ui 

us 
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1-25  1  1.4    [1.6 

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\ 


Photographic 

Sciences 

Corporation 


23  WIST  MAIN  STRiET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  14S80 

(716)S72-4S03 


o 


K, 


9> 


86 


JOURNAL    OF   THE 


>  I 


pass  tbrougb.     Among  these  lakes  was  the  Thousand  Island 
Lake.     We  slept  at  the  cntruuee  of  the  Savan  River. 

September  28. — Early  tliis  morning  we  ascended  the  Savan 
River.  At  noon  we  made  a  portage,  and  then  made  another 
called  Prairie  I'ortage,  at  the  end  of  which  we  encamped  for 
the  night.  Prairie  Portage  is  three  miles  long,  but  it  is  a 
dry  one.  It  forms  the  limit  between  Canada  and  Hudson's 
Bay  Territory.  x\t  the  west  end  of  it  are  the  waters  and 
sources  of  tlie  rivers  that  flow  to  Hudson's  Bay ;  and  at  the 
east  end,  those  that  run  to  Lake  Superior  and  the  River  St. 
Lawrence. 

September  29. — We  now  descended  the  crooked  Dog 
River,  made  several  portages,  and  encamped  at  the  mouth 
of  Doi>*  River. 

September  30. — Early  this  morning  we  pulled  across  the 
tine  Dog  Lake,  and  made  the  Dog  Portage,  which  is  a  beau- 
tiful mountain  portage  very  nearly  three  miles  in  length.  At 
the  head  of  this  portage  is  a  large  earth  figure  of  a  dog,  that 
is  said  to  have  been  constructed  by  a  band  of  Sioux  Indians, 
many  years  ago.  They  (if  we  may  put  confidence  in  the  story) 
came  up  from  the  west  to  this  end  of  tlie  portage  in  search 
of  Chippeway  scalps,  and  not  succeeding  in  this,  they 
stopped  hero  and  made  the  figure  of  a  dog,  from  which  the 
portage  received  its  name.  Some  think  the  reason  of  the 
Sioux  for  making  the  dog,  was  to  show  what  they  thought 
of  their  enemies,  the  (.■hippeways.  They  looked  upon  them 
as  worthless  dogs. 

At  noon  we  dined  at  a  certain  portage,  where  occurred 
the  incident  mentioned  below,  in  one  of  my  former  voyages. 
In  the  year  1842,  when  I  was  returning  from  England  to 
Lac  la  Pluie,  I  had  what  arc  called  in  this  country  lazy 
voyagers.  They  encamped  early,  and  got  up  late  in  the 
morning.  Smart  voyagei-s  do  the  reverse;  they  encamp 
late  for  the  night,  and  get  up  early  in  the  morning.  My 
connnands  to  the  men  to  rise  had  frequently  no  efiect.  When 
I  got  up  early  on  this  occasion,  at  the  portage  just  referred 
to,  I  thought  I  would  induce  the  men  to  make  an  early  start. 
I  said  to  them,  "  Come,  boys,  rise  up ;  it  is  time  to  go."  They 
only  gave  groans  like  hogs,  turned  round  their  bodies,  and 
began  to  take  another  sweet  nap.  On  seeing  this,  I  con- 
trived means  and  ways  to  make  the  lazy  fellows  gel:  up.  The 
plan  I  chose  was  this:  I  got  a  pile  of  light  vvood,  such  as 


'1/  -^ 


''^^•" 


REV.    I'KTEK   JACOBS. 


87 


[d  Island 

r  * 

|io  Savjin 
another 
iped  for 
|it  it  is  a 
fudson's 
cei-s  and 
|d  at  the 
liver  St. 


3d   Dog 
mouth 


ross  the 
a  beau- 
■th.    At 
og,  that 
Indians, 
le  story) 
searcli 
,    they 
lich  tiie 
of  the 
■hough  t 
II  them 

icurred 
)yages. 
ind  to 
y  lazy 
in  the 
icamp 
My 
mien 
ferred 
start. 
They 
,  and 
con- 
The 
h  as 


pine,  cedar,  and  birch-bark ;  I  then  lighted  a  match  and  set 
it  to  the  birch-bark,  and  to  the  dry,  light  wood.  This  soon 
burned,  and  a  great  blazing  firu  was  made.  At  this  time  I 
cried  out  aloud,  "  Your  blankets  are  burning,  men  I"  Every 
one  scrambled  away  to  save  his  blanket  from  burning.  I 
did  the  same  frequently  afterward,  liy  this  plan  I  accom- 
plished my  journey  much  sooner  than  I  would  have  done 
otherwise. 

After  dinner  I  examined  our  remaining  stock  of  provisions. 
I  found  out  that  there  was  only  a  good  large  meal  remaining  for 
each  one  of  us,  whereas  four  meals  were  yet  wanting  for  eacli 
before  our  journey  would  bo  accomplished.  Only  a  meal 
for  each.  We  then  held  a  consultation  as  to  what  we  should 
do  respecting  our  provisions.  So  we  came  to  the  conclusion 
that  we  would  not  take  a  meal  for  the  next  twenty-four 
hours,  that  is,  not  till  noon  of  the  following  day.  For  the 
evening  we  encamped  at  one  of  the  portages. 

October  1. — We  made  an  early  start.  Had  no  breakfast 
to-day.  We  had  our  dinner  at  the  portage  above  the  falls. 
I  turned  cook,  while  my  men  were  engaged  in  carrying  the 
things.  I  took  the  flour  and  ham,  the  only  provisions  we 
had,  and  commenced  making  dough,  out  of  which  I  made  a 
sort  of  dumplings.  I  cooked  away.  I  boiled  the  dumplings 
and  ham  together.  The  dinner  was  soon  ready.  My  men 
came  up  quite  glad,  and  were  saying,  "  Master  seems  to  be 
a  good  cook."  We  were  so  hungry  that  not  a  bit  remained 
over.  Thus  the  last  of  our  provisions  was  gone.  We  were 
again  obliged  to  do  without  food  the  next  twenty-four 
hours. 

After  dinner  we  soon  made  the  Mountain  Portage.  See  what 
I  say  about  this  portage  in  page  24  of  this  journal.  The 
water  was  now  very  low,  consequently  vo  were  disappointed 
making  a  quick  descent  on  the  Fort  William  River.  We 
could  have  gone  down  quickly  Lad  the  water  been  high,  as 
the  current  is  in  our  favor.  We  could  not,  however,  enjoy 
this  fiworable  current.  I  had  to  go  ashore  and  walk  for 
miles.  In  m«ny  places  the  water  was  not  more  than  six 
inches  deep.  We  encamped  on  the  banks  of  the  river,  and 
went  to  bed  supperless. 

October  2. — This  morning  we  had  no  breakfast.  Started 
early.  On  account  of  the  shallowness  of  the  water,  made 
slow  progress.    In  the  forenoon  I  walked  over  twelve  miles,  but 


88 


JOLItNAL    OF    THK 


!  i 


for  nine  miles  of  this  the  path  on  the  bank  of  the  river  was  beau- 
tiful. At  noon  the  nine-mile  path  brought  me  to  a  still  water 
very  deep.  We  had  yet  no  dinner,  and  were  hungry.  My 
men,  still  up  the  river  somewhere,  were  coming  down  as  fast 
and  as  well  as  they  could.  From  this  place  the  water  was 
deep  all  the  way  to  Fort  William.  When  my  men  arrived 
I  jumped  into  the  canoe.  We  now  went  on  in  deep  water. 
Just  as  we  made  one  turn  of  the  river,  we  espied  wigwams; 
on  approaching  them  we  thought  we  would  now  get  some- 
thing to  eat.  True  enough,  the  Indians  had  hundreds  and 
thousands  of  white  fish ;  they  had  also  some  cooked.  They 
gave  us  some  fish,  for  which  we  were  thankful ;  we  lay  to 
and  ate  heartily.  It  was  now  twenty-four  hours  since  we 
last  ate  at  the  Mountain  Portage.  After  dinner  we  proceed- 
ed to  Fort  William,  where  we  were  kindly  received  by  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Ermatinger. 

October  3. — To-day  I  paid  off  my  voyagers,  rigged  them 
up,  and  gave  them  provisions  for  their  homeward  voyage. 
They  started  for  their  homes.  I  inquired  at  the  fort  if  I 
could  get  any  men  to  take  me  on  the  Sault,  but  was  told 
that  there  were  none  to  be  found.  So  I  was  obliged  to  wait 
here  the  next  ten  days  for  the  vessel  White  Fish.  During 
my  stay  with  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Ermatinger  I  was  well  treated 
by  them.  I  interpreted  for  Mr.  Ermatinger  in  his  trading 
with  the  Indians.  The  days  seemed  to  pass  away  more 
quickly  this  way  than  they  would  if  I  had  had  nothing  to  do. 
At  last  the  vessel  White  Fish  arrived,  and  stayed  only  one 
day.  The  next  morning  I  was  oft',  being  well  supplied  with 
eatables  by  Mr.  Ermatinger  for  the  voyage  on  Lake  Supe- 
rior. Nothing  worth  raentioninf  ^curred  in  the  voyage; 
only  we  had  high  winds,  and  wt  -metimes  in  danger  ol' 
being  driven  against  the  rocks  oi  granite  in  the  lake;  at 
length  we  arrived  at  Sault  Ste.  Marie.  From  this  place  I 
took  a  steamer  to  Detroit,  and  from  there  went  on  to  Buftalo. 
I  then  proceeded  by  cars  to  the  Niagara  Falls.  From  this 
place  I  went  on  to  Toronto,  Cobourg,  and  Rice  Lake. 
Here  I  found  my  wife  and  family,  all  well.  I  thanked  God 
that  he  had  spared  my  life  and  the  lives  of  my  wife  and 
family  that  we  might  see  each  other  once  more  here  on 
earth.     Thus  ends  the  six  months'  journey. 

The  next  Sabbath  I  preached  at  the  church  in  the  village 
to  a  large  and  attentive  congregation,  from   the  words  in 


REV.    PETEK    JACOBS. 


89 


Psalm  cvii,  "  O  give  thanks  unto  the  Lord,  for  he  is  good ; 
for  his  mercy  endureth  forever."  In  my  discourse  I  made 
mention  of  my  sufferings,  perils,  and  privations  in  my  jour- 
ney. I  referred  to  the  happy  meetings  I  had  with  the 
Christian  Indians  at  the  Wesleyan  Mission  Stations  of  the 
Northwest.  I  said  that  there,  also,  the  Sun  of  Righteous- 
ness had  risen  with  healing  in  his  wings,  and  was  shedding 
light  upon  the  benighted  heathen.  I  directed  my  audience 
to  pray  for  the  extension  of  the  Redeemer's  kingdom,  so 
that  many  more  heathen  in  Hudson's  Bay  might  be  glad- 
dened at  the  joyful  tidings  of  a  Saviour's  love.  The  dis- 
course made  a  good  impression  upon  the  audience.  I  again 
bless  God  for  bringing  me  back  in  safety  to  my  journey's 
end. 


1    't 


ifnr 


li 


$fi 


eu 


roqr 


y 


WESLEYAN  MISSION  AT  ROSSVILLE, 

IN   THE 

HUDSON'S  BAY  TERRITORIES. 


The  mission  village  of  Rossville,  in  the  Hudson's  Bay  Ter- 
ritories, is  situated  about  three  miles  from  Norway  House, 
one  of  the  principal  trading  establishments  of  the  Hud- 
son's Bay  Company,  at  the  northern  end  of  Lake  Winni- 
peg. The  station  was  commenced  in  September,  1840,  by 
the  late  Rev.  James  Evans.  Having  selected  a  site  for  the 
erection  of  mission  premises,  and  dwelling  houses  for  the 
native  converts,  he  found  the  spot  thickly  covered  with 
poplars  and  underwood ;  but,  with  the  help  of  Peter  Jacobs, 
the  native  teacher,  aided  by  the  Indians  connected  with 
the  post,  he  soon  succeeded  in  clearing  the  wilderness  ;  and 
before  the  winter  set  in,  ten  comfortable  houses  had  been 
raised,  to  which  a  mission  house  was  added  by  the  Honor- 
able Company.  The  Indians,  for  whose  benefit  the  station 
was  especially  designed,  are  a  part  of  the  Swampy  Cree 
tribe;  some  of  whom  find  permanent  employment  us  fish- 
ermen, boatmen,  and  laborers,  in  the  service  of  the  com- 
pany, while  others  procure  their  subsistence  by  hunting  the 
fur- bearing  animals  with  which  the  country  abounds,  the 
skins  of  which  they  sell  to  the  company's  agents. 

Four  months  previously  to  the  commencement  of  the 
station,  the  Rev.  R.  T.  Rundle  had  arrived  at  the  Norway 
House  on  his  way  to  the  Sascatchewan  district ;  and  while 
awaiting  the  arrival  of  Mr.  Evans  to  take  charge  of  the 
mission,  he  opened  his  commission  by  preaching  in  English 
to  the  company's  officers  and  clerks,  and  addressed  the  In- 


dians through  the  me'4 
occasion  of  his  proclairifrf^r 


an  interpreter.     On  the  firsi 
gospel  to  the  Indians,  about 


92 


WESLEYAN   MISSION    AT  ROSSVILLE, 


il 


*■       !| 


;1 


one  hundred  were  present,  who  manifested  great  attention 
while  he  unfolded  to  them  the  plan  of  redeeming  love.  On 
that  very  day  some  of  them  applied  to  him  for  baptism ; 
but  wishing  to  instruct  them  further  in  the  things  of  God, 
he  declined  complying  with  their  request  for  a  season.  The 
Indians  appeared  to  be  a  people  prepared  of  the  Lord. 
Donald  Ross,  Esquire,  the  company's  officer,  the  gentleman 
after  whom  the  village  received  its  name,  had  taken  great 
pains  in  endeavors  to  civilize  them ;  and  he  had  been  evi- 
dently rendered  very  useful  in  preparing  theni  to  re- 
ceive the  word  of  truth.  Before  Mr.  Evans  reached  the 
post,  several  of  the  Indians  were  under  deep  concern  for 
the  salvation  of  their  immortal  souls,  and  one,  a  female,  had 
been  made  a  happy  believer  in  Jesus.  The  Indians  now 
came  from  a  distance  to  hear  the  word ;  and  it  was  no  un- 
common sight  to  see  groups  of  penitents,  of  every  age,  weep- 
ing under  the  subduing  influence  of  the  Spirit's  power. 
Being  united  in  church  fellowship,  they  steadily  advanced 
in  Christian  koowledge  and  piety,  and  demonstrated  to 
those  around,  that  the  grace  of  God  can  change  the  sav- 
age into  a  saint.  Simultaneously  with  his  labors  in  the  for- 
mation of  the  village,  the  efforts  of  Mr,  Evans  were  directed 
to  the  adoption  of  measures  for  the  still  further  diffusion 
of  divine  truth.  Having  invented  syllabic  characters,  by 
which  the  reading  of  the  Cree  language  might  be  greatly 
fticilitated,  he  succeded,  after  encountering  jnany  difficulties, 
in  cutting  punches,  casting  type,  and  printing,  with  his  own 
hand,  lesson-books,  hymns,  and  portions  of  the  holy  Scrip- 
tures, &c.  Many  of  the  Indians  and  children  quickly  ac- 
quired the  art  of  reading,  and  learned  to  sing  with  fluency 
our  beautiful  hymns. 

The  summer  of  1842  was  unfavorable  to  agricultural 
improvements,,  but  the  religious  state  of  the  misson  was 
encouraging.  The  number  of  residents  on  the  station  in- 
creased, and  the  school  was  in  a  prosperous  state,  the  aver- 
age attendance  being  fifty-five.  The  company  erected  a 
school-house  at  the  village,  and  the  foundation  for  a 
chapel  was  commenced. 

The  Rossville  settlement  consisted  in  the  autumn  of  1844 
of  thirty  dwelling  houses,  a  chapel  in  course  of  erection,  a 
school-house  and  workshop.  Tn'l'i  ^y  advanced  under  the 
influence  of  Christianity.     T  atioi'^tivation  carried  on  bv 


\; 


\ 


i     * 


IN   TlIK    UID.SON'.S    JJAY   TliUUITOUV. 


u:i 


■attention 
Jove.    On 
Ibaptism ; 
of  God, 
Ion.    The 
le  Lord, 
entlemaa 
\en  great 
leen  evi- 
to  re- 
ihed  the 
icern  for 
ale,  had 
ans  now 
ts  no  un- 
fe,  weep- 
power. 
idvanced 
rated  to 
the  sav- 
the  for- 
directed 
diffusion 
3ters,  by 
5  greatly 
ficulties, 
his  own 
y  Scrip- 
ckly  ac- 
fluency 

cultural 
on  was 
tion  in- 
le  aver- 
Bcted  a 
for   a 

f  1844 
jtion,  a    ■ 
ier  the 
on  bv 


i. 


the  inhabitants  gave  promise  of  a  productive  harvest  of  bar- 
ley, turnips,  and  potatoes,  the  only  crops  which  the  rigor 
of  the  climate  permitted  them  to  cultivate.  The  mission 
garden,  commenced  in  the  spring,  afforded  a  constant  sup- 
ply of  fresh  vegetables  for  the  iamilies  of  the  missionaries 
during  summer,  as  well  as  sti)rc- potatoes  for  the  long  win- 
ter, and  seed  for  the  following  spring.  The  gardens  of  the 
children  in  the  school,  Mr.  Mason  stati;d,  in  a  communication 
to  the  committee,  looked  well,  as  also  the  gardens  and 
fields  of  barley  throughout  the  settlement ;  bnt,  what  was 
infinitely  more  important,  the  people  advanced  in  spiritual 
attainments.  Their  regular  attendance  on  the  means  of 
grace,  their  consistent  behavior,  and  the  ardent  desire  they 
manifested  for  the  salvation  of  their  fellow-countrymen  still 
in  heathen  darkness,  showed  them  to  be  possessed  of  those 
sacred  principles  which  had  made  them  "  new  creatures  in 
Christ  Jesus." 

The  church,  erected  by  the  assistance  of  the  company, 
was  opened  for  divine  service  in  1846,  and  improved  the 
appearance  of  the  village  as  well  as  greatly  promoted  the 
comfort  of  the  ministers  and  w  /rshipers.  Being  anxious  to 
establish  a  manual-labor  school,  Mr.  Evans  procured  from 
the  Red  River  settlement  a  female  teacher  to  instruct  the 
girls  in  spinning ;  and  his  excellency  Sir  George  Simpson, 
the  governor  of  the  company's  territories,  generously  sup- 
plied eighty-eight  pounds  of  wool,  the  first  ever  spun  at 
Rossville.  The  summer  and  fall  of  this  year  were  very  fa- 
vorable for  the  gardens,  which  produced  nearly  one  thous- 
and bushel  5  of  potatoes.  They  improved  much  in  civili- 
zation. They  were  clean  and  neat  in  their  persons,  and 
their  houses  exhibited  an  air  of  cor^ifort.  When  assem- 
bled in  the  house  of  God  on  the  S.^^  >"  ath,  the  missionary 
reported  their  deportment  and  appeara.ice  are  such,  that  it 
would  have  been  difficult  to  decide  whether  it  was  an  as- 
sembly of  whites,  excepting  for  the  deep  brown  color  of 
their  skin.  The  power  and  presence  of  God  were  felt  in 
the  public  ministrations  of  the  sanctuary,  as  well  as  at 
prayer-meetings  and  more  private  means  of  grace ;  and  the 
church  members  progressed  in  knowledge  and  holiness. 
The  schools  were  in  a  flourishing  state,  and  promised,  at  no 
distant  period,  to  furnish  native  agevits  for  employment  on 
the  mission.     From  Donald  Ross,  Esquire*,  .ttie  missionaries 


.y*i»*<y-« 


TglT 


I 


04 


WKHLKVAN    MISSION    Al'    IJOSSVIfXE, 


received  unromittinjif  kiiidiics.s ;  and  the  interests  of  the 
people  were  promoted  by  tluit  gciitlciman  to  the  utmost  of 
his  MbiUty.  A  mission  press  was  s(>n(  from  England  ut  the 
close  of  the  year,  mucli  to  the  jo}'  of  the  missionaries,  who 
had  long  and  anxiously  looked  for  such  a  means  of  carrying 
the  light  of  the  gospel  to  the  dark  places  surrounding  them 
on  every  hand. 

The  Indians  on  the  station  were  reported,  in  1846,  to  bo 
persevering,  generally,  in  the  paths  of  piety,  and  the  work 
of  God  prospered.  The  school  was  in  a  promising  state,  and 
the  progress  of  the  youth  and  children  Avas  satisfactory  to 
the  missionary,  and  di({  credit  to  (lu^  teachers.  The  young 
females  were  advancing  in  the  knowledge  of  domestic 
duties.  The  femahj  teacher,  engaged  during  the  previous 
year,  had  succeeded  in  teaching  several  of  the  girls  to  spin, 
and  to  knit  stockings,  gloves,  ,'ind  mittens,  and  to  make 
straw  hats  and  bonnets. 

Space  does  not  permit  tJKit  we  should  continue  the  his- 
tory of  the  station  througli  successive  years ;  but  its  grati- 
fying state  at  the  present  time  is  shown  in  the  following 
extract  of  a  communication  from  the  Rev,  William  Mason, 
who  writes  under  datc^  of  August  19th,  1852  : — 

"  Never  were  our  missions  more  prosperous,  and  never 
were  our  circumstances  more  calculated  to  inspire  hope. 
We  all  feel  encouraged,  and  with  renewed  faith  and  trust 
in  God  our  Saviour,  are  we  determined  to  prosecute  our 
work  of  mercy,  for  the  progress  of  our  missions  is  truly  en- 
courafjinof.  There  is  a  jxradual  improvement  Koino-  on  in 
the  experience  and  knowledge  of  divine  things  in  the  mem- 
bers of  society.  Their  upright  and  consistent  conduct ; 
their  steadfastness  and  diligent  attention  to  religious,  and 
conscientious  discharge  of  relative  duties,  both  at  home  and 
when  hunting,  cannot  fail  in  giving  satisfaction  and  encour- 
agement to  all  who  take  an  interest  in  the  spiritual  and 
temporal  welfare  of  the  poor  aborigines  of  these  extensive 
territories. 

Heathenism  has  received  its  death-blow,  and  falls  before 
the  power  and  influence  of  the  gospel.  Priestly  incanta- 
tions and  Indian  juggling  have  ceased :  the  conjurer^  them- 
selves are  asking  for  baptism  at  the  hands  of  the  mission- 
aries. The  day  before  the  arrival  of  the  Rev.  Peter 
Jacobs,  I  admitted  into  the  visible  Church  of  Christ  five 


\ 


IN  THE  IIlJDHON'rt    HAY    IKUKITORV. 


\)5 


ts  of  tho 

itmost  of 
Ind  at  the 
larics,  who 
if  carrvinc: 
Iding  them 

1846,  to  1)0 
the  work 
L  state,  and 
jsfnctory  to 
Trho  young 
domestic 
10  previous 
iris  to  spin, 
d  to  make 

uo  the  his- 
it  its  grati- 
10  following 
iam  Mason, 

,  and  never 
ispire  hope, 
til  and  trust 
rosecute  our 
5  is  truly  en- 
jLfoing  on  in 
in  tho  mem- 
nt  conduct ; 
?ligious,  {\nd 
fit  homo  and 
and  encour- 
ipiritual  and 
se  extensive 

[  falls  before 
stly  incanta- 
jurer^  them- 
the  mission- 
Rev.  Peter 
f  Christ  five 


ohildren  of  the  chief  of  a  few  remaining  pagans  of  Norway 
House.  At  Jackson  Bay  and  Oxford  Housu  we  baptized 
thirty-four  souls.*  We  have  one  hurulrod  and  twenty  in 
society  at  Rossville,  and  ten  on  trial ;  the  school  is  also 
prospering.  Since  the  arrival  of  Mr.  James  Isbister  from 
Nelson  River,  (whose  diligent  and  persovtfring  application 
to  the  duties  of  his  office  I  cannot  but  commend,)  tho  chil- 
dren have  made  rapid  progress.  There  are  seventy-four 
scholars,  divided  into  ten  classes,  who  are  taught  reading, 
writing,  arithmetic,  and  singing.  Many  of  the  children  love 
the  school,  and  beg  to  i-emain  at  tho  village,  when  necessity 
compels  their  parents  to  leave,  that  they  may  go  to  school. 
Their  good  conduct  and  regular  attendance  are  truly  pleas- 
ing ;  and  we  have  every  reason  to  hope  that  they  will  be  a 
blessing  to  the  land  of  their  birth ;  certain  it  is,  they  will 
be  much  more  intelligent  than  their  fathers.  But  we  never 
forget,  that  grace  alone  can  renew  the  heart,  and  make 
them  '*  new  creatures  in  Christ  Jesus." 

Our  church  has  undergone  repairs.  During  the  winter 
we  sawed  timber  for  weather-boarding,  which  was  planed 
in  the  spring,  and  put  up.  The  building  now  looks  very 
well,  and  will  last  for  years,  as  it  has  been  painted  both  in- 
side and  out.  Toward  defraying  the  expenses  incuned,  1 
am  glad  to  acknowledge  the  liberal  contribution  of  George 
Bamston,  Esquire,  of  £5,  and  also  £2  for  prizes  to  the 
school  children.  The  Christian  Indians  gave  three  days' 
work  each,  and  some  of  them  are  becoming  quite  expert 
joiners. 

A  great  stimulus  was  given  to  the  children's  progress  in 
learning,  and  to  the  mission  generally,  by  the  interest 
which  George  Bamston,  Esquire,  has  taken  in  the  pros- 
perity of  our  cause,  and  by  the  very  liberal  contributions 
of  some  of  the  honorable  company's  officers,  a  hst  of 
which  I  now  forward  you  for  due  insertion.  (The  transfers 
will  appear  in  the  company's  account  next  year.) 

Our  operations  in  the  printing  department  have  been 
somewhat  retarded  by  the  want  of  a  printer  and  an  ink 
ball ;  yet,  notwithstanding,  we  managed  to  take  off  an 
edition,  of  St.  John's  Gospel,  six  copies  of  which  I  now  for- 

^  More  than  eight  hundred  baptisms  arc  registered  pu  this  station 
since  the  commeuccment  of  the  mission,  in  the  year  18-10. 

7 


96 


WE8LEYAN    MIHHION    AT   l(O.S8VU,LE. 


V 


i 


ward  you.  This  will  bo  u  great  blessinfj  to  our  Indians,  ea- 
pecially  when  far  away  from  tlioir  homes  and  tiie  appointed 
meanH  of  grace,  endeavorin<(  to  obtain  food  and  clothing 
for  their  families  by  the  only  means  these  cold  and  desolate 
regions  afford,  namely,  hunting.  Our  Indians  are  fond  of 
reading,  and  highly  value  the  books  printed  in  the  syllabic 
characters,  a  knowledge  of  wliich  they  soon  acquire  This 
additional  publication  will  be  to  them  a  rich  mine  of  spiritual 
wealth,  imparting  light  to  their  minds,  consolation  to  their 
hearts,  and  will  lead  them  to  hope  and  prepare  for  a  better 
and  brighter  world  above.  We  need  help  in  this  department ; 
for  we  are  quite  out  of  our  hymn-books,  prayer-books,  and 
catechisms,  translations  of  which  works  are  ready  for  a 
second  and  third  edition. 

My  own  proper  work,  thank  God,  I  have  been  enabled 
to  perform  during  the  past  year  without  intermission  : 
preaching  once  in  English  to  the  residents  of  the  company's 
fort,  Norway  House,  and  twice  in  Indian  at  Rossville,  every 
Sabbath.  In  both  places  the  congregations  are  good,  and 
the  people  give  great  attention  to  the  word  of  life.  Our 
school  examination,  conducted  by  George  Barnston,  Es- 
quire, was  a  very  interesting  occasion;  iJlO  in  goods  and 
provisions  were  distributed ;  and  truly  sorry  we  were  that 
Mr.  Jacobs  had  not  arrived  to  enjoy  the  scene. 

I  forward  you,  also,  by  this  opportunity  two  letters  from 
the  Sascatchewan,  one  from  James  Hope,  and  the  other  from 
Batosh ;  the  earnest  and  touching  appeal  for  help  I  hope 
will  be  met  by  our  conference  in  Canada.  Another  priest 
has  gone  up  there  this  summer. 


THE  END. 


ik. 


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Another  priest 


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